AG Wants Pervs and Votes – At Same Time

Attorney General Bill McCollum has been hitting the airwaves a lot lately in his battle against Internet sex predators, but many think McCollum has an ulterior motive.

For weeks critics have argued that McCollum's ads blur the line between protecting children from online sex offenders and P.T. Barnum-like self-promotion.

It's clear that fighting online sex crimes is a noble endeavor for McCollum and any politician. But whether McCollum may be using state funds to promote himself for his 2010 reelection bid is debatable.

Watch The McCollum Ad

"Mr. McCollum has a duty to inform residents of serious crime problems, but he should find a better way to make his point, preferably without confusing the message between self-promotion and crime awareness,'' the Miami Herald writes in an editorial. "He has displayed poor judgment and should cut his losses by putting an end to the TV ads."

The fact that McCollum's 2006 campaign ad creator, Philiadelphia-based Chris Mottola, made these new ads isn't helping the AG's case.

Mottola got two no-bid contracts worth $1.4 million to produce the ads, which means Florida taxpayer money that could have stayed in-state instead went to Pennsylvania.

McCollum is getting his 30 seconds of face time now, but it may be at the cost of four more years.

Contact Us