A mailer attacking Libertarian gubernatorial nominee Donald Rainwater shows that it was paid for by the Indiana Republican State Committee. (Credit: Abdul-Hakim Shabazz)
Loser. Deadbeat. Embarrassment.
That’s how the Indiana Republican Party’s state committee described Libertarian gubernatorial nominee Donald Rainwater in mailers now hitting Hoosier letterboxes.
Rainwater faces Republican U.S. Sen. Mike Braun and Democrat Jennifer McCormick in the Nov. 5 election.
The mailer — first reported by political commentator Abdul-Hakim Shabazz — accuses Rainwater of losing custody of his child, failing to pay child support and being held in contempt by a judge.
“Perennial loser and deadbeat dad,” it reads. “Donald Rainwater is an embarrassment.”
But Rainwater said he’s “resolved any legal issues” in the mailer.
In a Wednesday statement, he recounted getting divorced about 30 years ago, with a settlement that granted his ex-wife custody of their children.
Then, he lost his job.
“I experienced … several years of occupational and financial difficulty. I fell behind on my child support payments, like many parents have struggled with,” Rainwater wrote. “Through tenacity, hard work, and help from family and friends, I was able to stabilize my occupational and financial situation. I successfully paid my back child support and resolved any legal issues associated with it.”
He framed himself as an “average Hoosier” who has faced relationship, occupational and financial struggles.
“If (Republicans) think this of me, what do they think of other Hoosiers who have had similar experiences?” Rainwater he asked.
He went on to knock the party for “running such a failing campaign that they feel it necessary to attempt to … diminish me.”
The Indiana GOP didn’t reply to the Capital Chronicle’s questions about why it sent the mailers, how many went out and to where.
The Indiana Democratic Party pounced Wednesday, reasoning that Rainwater’s appeal to Republicans has weakened Braun’s position.
“It is never a good sign when a campaign resorts to attack ads against a third-party candidate,” Party Chair Mike Schmuhl said in a news release. “Braun and state Republicans are worried about Jennifer McCormick’s momentum and will try anything to slow it down, even attacking a third party candidate who has little chance of winning.”
Schmuhl called the mailers “the move of a desperate campaign.”
This story will be updated.
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