Democrat Criticizes GOP Gun Ad in Duluth MN House Race

• GOP Attack Ad

Courtesy Duluth News Tribune

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DULUTH, Minn. (AP) — A Democrat running in a special election for a northern Minnesota House seat criticized a Republican attack ad that showed a hunter pointing a shotgun and the words "Take your best shot."

The mailed brochure urges voters to protect their gun rights from "Liberal St. Paul Politicians." An inside page carries a picture of Carly Melin, a Democrat running against Republican Paul Jacobson in the Feb. 15 election.

Melin called the ad "pretty disturbing" in light of last month's shootings in Tucson that injured U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords and killed six.

The brochure was funded by the state Republican Party, and Melin called for party head Tony Sutton to resign. Ken Martin, the state DFL chairman, called on the state GOP and Jacobson to disavow the ad.

Sutton told the Duluth News Tribune, which first reported the story, that the brochure was "obviously a hunting piece" and he dismissed any link to the Giffords shooting as "the worst kind of politics."

Melin said she had requested uniformed officers accompany her to a debate on Wednesday. She also said she was considering seeking a protection order from the county sheriff. She said she supports hunting rights and has owned a firearm since she was 14.

Independence Party candidate Cynthia Kafut-Hagen is also in the race.

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