Sid Salter Blog - David Landrum: A mixed bag on criticisms... - David Landrum, the Madison County businessman who has spent so much money on TV commercials in the 3rd District Congressional campaign, is drawing fire from his fellow Republican candidates. That's likely because his poll numbers are looking pretty good these days. Landrum has to be considered on the the frontrunners at this point and his media campaign has been excellent.
But what about the criticism from Landrum's opponents? Short answers?
1)David Landrum has given money to Ronnie Musgrove, but he gave far more to Haley Barbour and other Republicans. Landrum said he gave Musgrove the 2003 money because business friends were interested in tort reform. But Musgrove's tort reform special session was in 2002, not 2003. That inconsistency hasn't been explained.
2)David Landrum's personal voting record remains vague and documents he released today purporting to knock down that criticism from his opponents didn't get the job done. But Landrum hasn't dodged questions about it.
I met with David Landrum weeks ago and asked him about rumors that he had not been a regular voter and that records were sketchy that he cast a legitimate ballot in the 2003 elections. There was also the matter of the $1,000 contribution to Gov. Ronnie Musgrove's 2003 campaign — which bothers Republicans voting in a primary. Landrum said his voting problems were the province of having moved from Country Club of Jackson to Madison County and that his voter registration was not handled properly, driving him to cast affidavit ballots. Today, he released records purporting to document that allegations that he hasn't been a regular Republican voters are false. So far, these documents appear to raise more questions than they answer. To satisfy Republican critics, Landrum can best put this to rest by documenting how many elections over the last 20 years that he's voted in and whether he's regularly voted in GOP primaries. To date, Landrum's answers to the allegations about his voting record have been vague.
But as to the $1,000 donation to Musgrove in 2003, Landrum indeed made that donation. But he gave Republican Gov. Haley Barbour $5,000 in 2003. From 2002-2007 Landrum documents donations of over $48,000 to GOP candidates including Barbour($17,000), Lt. Gov. Phil Bryant($11,500), Sec. of State Delbert Hosemann, Rudy Giuliani and the Bush campaign in addition to the Miss. GOP.
Flora Harvester - Rounsaville and Landrum spar over voting record - District 3 Congressional candidate David Landrum has come under fire from a fellow Republican candidate, John Rounsaville, a former Pickering staff member, for allegedly not voting in any election since November of 2000 and for making a campaign contribution to former Democratic Governor Ronnie Musgrove in his race against then Republican candidate for Governor Haley Barbour on October 24, 2003, two weeks before the election.
At a candidate forum on February 11 in Noxapater, Mr. Landrum was questioned about the Musgrove contribution. “I voted for Governor Barbour,” Landrum said. “I think that everybody that knows me knows that I supported Governor Barbour during that election.” During the exchange, Landrum went on to admit to making the contribution explaining that some of his business associates requested he make the donation in 2003 to Musgrove in the interest of tort reform.
But, at a February 20 press conference, Rounsaville produced a Voter Profile Report dated December 7, 2007 that showed that while Landrum had been registered to vote in Madison County since 1991, he had not cast a vote since November 7, 2000.
“Our right to vote is one of our most cherished rights and responsibilities as American citizens. And for a candidate for Congress to have flagrantly and consistently failed to vote is not acceptable,” Rounsaville said. “And to then deceive voters and claim to have voted is even more troubling. If David Landrum couldn’t be bothered to vote in elections here in Mississippi, he has no business asking to be our vote in the U.S. House of Representatives.”
Landrum responded on Friday, February 22 in a press release, and by releasing voter sign in sheets for 2003 GOP Primary Affidavit Voters when he was a resident of District 1 in Hinds County. “After a recent move to Hinds County, David Landrum registered to vote and then voted by affidavit in the City of Jackson for both the 2003 GOP Primary and the 2003 General Election. The signatures copied from the actual voter-sign in books prove that David and his wife Jill voted in both of these elections,” the statement read. The statement went on to state that “During the 2003 election cycle, David Landrum lived in Jackson where he voted in District 1, Precinct 78, in the GOP Primary and the General Election. During the 2007 election cycle, David Landrum lived in Madison County and voted in the 2007 GOP Primary and the General Election.”
Affidavit ballots are made available to persons who claim to be residents of the particular precinct but whose names for some reason do not appear on the rolls. However, a decision on whether or not to count the affidavit ballot is not made until after the polls close, when the executive committee or election commission is totaling the results of the election. Further adding to the confusion, is the fact that there was no computerized statewide voter registration system in Mississippi until 2006. Prior to that, counties were forced to notify one another of a change in a voter’s registration status.
Landrum Campaign Manager Neil Forbes described the Rounsaville statement as a “personal and misleading attack.” "The truth was a casualty earlier this week, and it is time to set the record straight," said Forbes. "David not only voted in these elections but participated in the political process by volunteering his time and resources to Gov. Haley Barbour's transition team in 2003 and other important community service during this period."
But, the tiff between the two campaigns continued on late Friday with Rounsaville’s campaign manager, Danny O’Driscoll releasing yet another statement. “The press release issued earlier today by David Landrum’s campaign failed to provide the proof they claimed to have that David Landrum voted between November 2000 and November 2007. In fact, Landrum’s release misrepresented the two documents that it relied on, further distorting the truth,” the statement read. “Contrary to his campaign’s assertions, David Landrum was never registered to vote in Hinds County. The Hinds County Clerk’s office confirmed again today that David Landrum is not, and has never been, registered to vote there.” The statement went on to describe the claimed signature “illegible” and that the “Hinds County records of the 2003 Republican Primary election do not contain an affidavit voting envelope for David Landrum.”
The release also claims that contrary to the Landrum campaigns rebuttal that “The 2003 Hinds County Voter Registration book for the November election does not contain the name of David Landrum, Thomas David Landrum, or another combination thereof, so this signature cannot be his. He would not have been allowed to sign the poll book if he was not listed as a registered voter. Even if the Landrum campaign’s assertion that David Landrum did attempt to cast a ballot in Hinds County were true, this ballot would have been rejected by the Hinds County Election Commission because he wasn’t a registered voter.”
Rounsaville’s camp also says that Landrum has yet to address why he did not vote in the 2001 Special Election (Flag Referendum), and the 2002, 2004, and 2006 Primary and General Elections. Rounsaville’s release also questions why Landrum “failed to honestly answer why a so-called “Conservative Republican” would give liberal Democrat Governor Ronnie Musgrove a $1,000 contribution just two weeks before his election against Haley Barbour – a tried and true conservative leader.”
WTOK - Landrum Says He Voted in 2003 - Mississippi third district congressional candidate David Landrum Friday responded to an allegation made by an opponent. Earlier this week, fellow Republican John Rounsaville said Landrum had not voted since 2000. Landrum's campaign released records proving that he voted by affidavit in both the primary election and the general election in the 2003 gubernatorial race in Rankin County. Rounsaville also had criticized Landrum for donating to the gubernatorial campaign of Democrat Ronnie Musgrove. Landrum said he donated to both Musgrove and Barbour in 2003, and voted for Barbour. Newscenter 11 contacted Landrum's campaign for comment Wednesday, after Rounsaville held a news conference on this issue, and reported Landrum's acknowledgment of donating to both Musgrove and Barbour. Landrum's campaign also explained the candidate learned in the 2003 election that he was not properly registered, after moving from Hinds County to Madison County, and cast an affidavit ballot.
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