Janice Hahn files FEC complaint over offensive video
Reporting from Washington -- Los Angeles City Councilwoman and Democratic congressional candidate Janice Hahn has filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission over a widely criticized hip-hop-themed video that links her to gang members.
The ad, which uses stereotypical hip-hop video imagery and features Hahn’s face superimposed onto a stripper, was produced by a new third-party political action committee called Turn Right USA.
Hahn’s complaint alleges that Turn Right is working with the campaign of Republican Craig Huey, her opponent in the race to succeed Jane Harman in California’s 36th district. The election is July 12.
Huey’s camp has denounced the video, as have other Republicans, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee and advocacy groups, including the National Organization for Women.
Her complaint notes that a one-time volunteer for Huey, G. Rick Marshall, is a principal working for Turn Right, a “super PAC” that can raise unlimited funds from donors whose identities remain private. FEC rules prohibit such committees from coordinating their efforts directly with political campaigns.
The video contains a disclaimer that the PAC isn’t affiliated with the Huey campaign, and the filmmaker behind the ad, Ladd Ehlinger Jr., said there’s no connection.
He said Turn Right was established to go after “people that despise liberty.”
“I’ve got my eye on a couple Republicans too, man,” he said.
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