Rep. West ad blasts Murphy for running 'vile and negative campaign'

Rep. Allen West (R-Fla.) launched an ad on Monday attacking Democratic opponent Patrick Murphy for running a "vile and negative campaign" based on personal attacks.

The West ad is a response to a spot released by a pro-Murphy super-PAC featuring a caricature of West punching an elderly white woman and taking money from a black family. A number of conservative websites decried the ad as racist and inappropriate, and West's response attempts to frame it as an effort on Murphy's part to obscure his support for President Obama's healthcare reform law.

West's video accuses Murphy of making "false, shameful attacks" in the controversial ad, which was produced by American Sunrise PAC and not Murphy's campaign. West's ad points out that the super-PAC is largely funded by Murphy's father.

"Desperate to distract from his support for ObamaCare and its $700 billion cut to Medicare, Murphy and his father have set a new low bar for negative campaigning," West campaign manager Tim Edson said.

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