MORRIS COUNTY — Mikie Sherrill suggested a new standard for political campaigns and called on Jay Webber to return campaign resources raised with Arkansas Senator Tom Cotton. She justified the call for action on one vote Senator Cotton cast against extending the National Flood Insurance Program, a vote with which Jay disagreed. In response, Jay Webber released the following statement:
“Two days ago, Mikie Sherrill made a ridiculous claim that candidates for Congress should return any campaign contributions from elected officials that hold even one differing position from their own. I reject that idea as silly. But if Mikie believes that is the appropriate standard by which to conduct a campaign, then we invite her to live up her own standard. At the same time, Mikie has the perfect opportunity to prove that she really does support the Law Enforcement community.”
Wednesday, at the eleventh hour, after weeks of standing firmly with the abolish-ICE crowd, and just before the Webber Campaign held a press event with two Sheriffs and a former ICE agent to stand with ICE, Mikie Sherrill flip-flopped, issued a statement, and finally claimed she actually does not support the abolition of ICE. But Mikie has received $91,500 in campaign contributions from 33 Democratic Members of Congress who recently refused to support ICE on a vote in the House. So if Mikie really stands with ICE, and she believes that good-campaigning standards require the return of contributions from Members of Congress who cast even a single vote with which a candidate disagrees, then Mikie must now take immediate steps to return that money to those Members of Congress.
“Unless Mikie blatantly refuses to apply the same standards to herself as she would apply to others, Mikie will return those contributions right now. After months of running with the abolish-ICE crowd, it would be a strong show of support for the brave women and men who put themselves in harm’s way to keep our community safe from child predators and drug dealers. Failure to do so would be rank hypocrisy, coming on the heels of a massive flip-flop. It would also tell us where Mikie really stands when it comes to abolishing ICE.”