Controversy
Controversy arose after the DCCC issued press releases on June 29 and July 2, 2012 which claimed that funds from which Sheldon Adelson, a Las Vegas casino owner, donates to the Republican Party come in part from “Chinese prostitution money.” The press releases were repeating allegations from one of Adelson’s former employees who filed a lawsuit and alleged that Adelson “approved of prostitution at a casino in Macau.” The DCCC repeated the charges in press releases that attacked Republicans Jim Renacci, Scott DesJarlais, and Jim Gerlach.
Adelson fought back against the claims, which he called “outrageous”, and filed a brief threatening a libel suit against the DCCC which demanded that the “DCCC retract the claims, apologize for them, and retain any documents associated with them in preparation for a potential lawsuit.” Politifact, a nonpartisan fact checking organization, rated the DCCC’s claims as “pants on fire,” saying that the DCCC “seized upon questionable claim, extrapolated and exaggerated it to taint all of Adelson's political donations with prostitution earnings” and then carried “that on down a convoluted line to Scott DesJarlais and talk about “his Chinese prostitution money”.”
On August 2nd the DCCC issued a public apology, saying:
“In press statements issued on June 29 and July 2, 2012, the DCCC made unsubstantiated allegations that attacked Sheldon Adelson, a supporter of the opposing party. This was wrong. The statements were untrue and unfair and we retract them. The DCCC extends its sincere apology to Mr. Adelson and his family for any injury we have caused.”
Read more about this topic: Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee
Famous quotes containing the word controversy:
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