Republican U.S. Senate candidate Jeff Flake pulled and amended a campaign Web video this weekend after primary opponent Wil Cardon complained it contained a falsehood.
Flake agreed the information in the video was wrong and apologized.
The original video accused Cardon of failing to pay his insurance company's income taxes, resulting in the Internal Revenue Service revoking the company's tax status.
But Cardon has no connections to the company that Flake cited, Eagle Gate Insurance LTD.
The Cardon campaign sent out a press release Friday pointing out that Cardon never owned Eagle Gate and demanding that the video be pulled.
Flake's campaign withdrew the video Friday and then put it back up without the unpaid-taxes reference, said Flake's spokesman Andrew Wilder. He said they believed Cardon was associated with the Eagle Gate company because it operates out of the Cardon Group's headquarters.
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Flake, a six-term congressman who polls show is the front-runner in the race, posted this on his Facebook page on Saturday:
"I want to be sure that each communication from my campaign is accurate. When it was brought to my attention that Wil wasn't responsible for filing the 990 for Eagle Gate Insurance, as my web video claimed, I had it corrected immediately," Flake wrote. "My apologies, Wil. The error was unintentional, and I want to make sure my campaign is accurate in every detail."
The Flake video was attacking Cardon for, among other things, "doctoring the truth," citing Cardon's use of photoshopped pictures in campaign ads, and accusing Cardon of doing, "whatever it takes to win an election."
The Cardon campaign remains upset about the error, especially after it had been attacked about being "loose with the facts."
"It's unacceptable and unbecoming to accuse him of a crime," said Alyssa Pivirotto, Cardon's spokeswoman, on Monday.
"Since Day One, the Flake campaign has lied about Wil, his business record and his conservative credentials, but this is a new low," Pivirotto said in the press release. "To simply make up facts and accuse Wil of failure to file income taxes - a crime - is beyond shameful."
She said the accusations in the same video about Cardon being a "birther," which refers to people who believe President Obama is not eligible to be president because of his birthplace, are also false.
Wilder, Flake's spokesman, said the campaign corrected the mistake as soon as it became aware of it. He said Cardon did not correct the misleading photos when they were pointed out.
Voters will choose among Flake, Cardon, Bryan Hackbarth and Clair Van Steenwyk in the Aug. 28 GOP primary for U.S. Senate.
On the Democratic side, Richard Carmona, former U.S. surgeon general, is running unopposed.
Contact reporter Brady McCombs at 573-4213 or bmccombs@azstarnet.com
