Dan Webster: Alan Grayson’s dirtbaggery has really helped my campaign

I’m paraphrasing. As you’ll see, Webster is far too soft-spoken to call Teacups what he is, although the part about helping his campaign is dead on. Until this past weekend, I couldn’t have told you the name of Grayson’s GOP opponent. Now, thanks to his bottom-feeding, not only do I know who Webster is but he’s firmly in the “weep if we don’t take this seat” column on election night. Which, in an odd way, makes Grayson’s campaign ads of doom possibly the most effective of the cycle. It’s just that they’ve been effective in precisely the opposite way from how they were intended.

Total cash on hand as of early August: $105,000. Total funds raised in the last 48 hours: $100,000 and counting.

Daniel Webster, a Republican running for the House in Florida, sent out a fund-raising appeal Tuesday, according to a spokesman — not long after his Democratic opponent, Representative Alan Grayson, went up with an advertisement comparing Mr. Webster’s stances on women’s issues to the Taliban’s.

The response? Brian Graham, the Webster spokesman, says the campaign raised more than its original goal of $50,000 the first day the appeal went out. On Wednesday evening, a graphic on the candidate’s Web site appeared to show that the campaign had surpassed its revised goal of $100,000.

“Today has been better than we expected,” said Mr. Graham, who added that the campaign had also placed fund-raising pleas on Google and the Drudge Report. “We’ll be re-evaluating that goal again.”

Two clips here, one of Webster commenting on the grand backfire and the other of a new ad from Grayson showcasing the softer, cuddlier side of a guy prone to saying of Glenn Beck’s fans, “These are people who were wearing sheets over their heads 25 years ago.” I like to imagine that this new spot was filmed right after he gave the okay to smear his opponent as a Taliban-esque draft dodger who doesn’t love America. No wonder he’s in such a good mood.

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