Republicans and phone sex

Like the headline? The one where it looks like Republicans have something to do with phone sex? It's about as disingenuous as their latest attack ad, featuring "Democrat Michael Arcuri leering at the silhouette of a dancing woman who says, 'Hi, sexy. You've reached the live, one-on-one fantasy line.'"

It's based on some exhaustive research that revealed a 1-800 sex phone call... billed to... you!!! Okay, well, it turns out that the very next call, a minute later, was to the state Department of Criminal Justice Services, whose number has 7 digits in common with the sex line.

The National Republican Congressional Committee, according to AP, "stood by the 30-second message. Spokesman Ed Patru insisted it was 'totally true'..." Then again, wasn't it the head of that same NRCC, Tom Reynolds, who begged Mark Foley to run again in order to preserve one more seat for the GOP?

But here's the best part:

Robert Thompson, professor of television and popular culture at Syracuse University, called the ad "an egregiously stupid accusation."

...

One voter, Rosemarie Paladino of Utica, said she found such negative advertising so distasteful that she was tempted to avoid voting.

"But then I said, 'Wait a minute. I've got to exercise my right.'"