Dirty politics is nothing new

By Chuck Kajer, Managing Editor

In less than three weeks voters will go to the polls and determine who the next President of the United States will be.

The contest between John McCain and Barack Obama has gotten downright nasty at times. Cindy McCain claimed last week that Obama has been running one of the dirtiest campaigns in history. Republicans have said Obama supporters have raised innuendos about McCain's health and age and Sarah Palin's experience.

Cindy McCain's charges might have more merit if they weren't coming at the same time that her husband's running mate was accusing Obama of palling around with terrorists. A report last week showed that McCain's campaign was running roughly three times as many negative ads as Obama.

But is this the dirtiest campaign in history? Historian and author Joe Cummins' book, Anything for a Vote: Dirty Tricks