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Political ad with Nazi images draws criticism

A full-page newspaper advertisement that features a photo of Adolf Hitler and urges black voters to reject the re-election bid of Michigan’s governor has drawn criticism from the Democratic incumbent and her Republican opponent.
/ Source: The Associated Press

A full-page newspaper advertisement that features a photo of Adolf Hitler and urges black voters to reject the re-election bid of Michigan’s governor has drawn criticism from the Democratic incumbent and her Republican opponent.

The ad, which appeared this week in the Michigan Chronicle, the city’s largest black newspaper, includes a swastika and a photo of Gov. Jennifer Granholm.

“African-American voters should not only demand respect from the Democrats but also stop putting all their eggs in one basket,” the ad reads. “Say NO to Governor Granholm in November!”

The ad was placed by Voice the Vote, an independent political action committee based in Detroit. Granholm and her opponent, Republican Dick DeVos, condemned the ad.

“There is no place in Michigan politics for this ad. It is appalling and this approach is despicable and wrong,” DeVos said in a statement.

‘It’s just telling a story’
The ad features the story of Jesse Owens, who humiliated Hitler by winning four track and field gold medals in the 1936 Berlin Olympics and made campaign appearances for Republican presidential candidate Alf Landon, who was defeated by Democratic incumbent Franklin D. Roosevelt.

The ad also includes photos of Democratic Presidents Lyndon B. Johnson, Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton.

“To compare me and Bill Clinton and Jimmy Carter to Hitler is reprehensible,” Granholm said. “And I do think people are going to want to know who’s responsible for it.”

Political consultant Adolph Mongo helped put the ad together and defended the use of the Hitler image.

“Nobody is saying that Granholm and Hitler are the same person; it’s just telling a story,” Mongo told the Detroit Free Press.

“Black voters are not getting any love from Jennifer Granholm and the Democratic Party and that’s what this ad is about,” Nataki Harbin, Mongo’s stepdaughter and the PAC’s treasurer, told The Detroit News.