Sen. Brown, rival agree to curb Mass. attack ads (AP)

BOSTON ? Republican U.S. Sen. Scott Brown and his chief Democratic rival, Elizabeth Warren, have signed a pledge to curb political attack ads by outside groups in their Massachusetts Senate race.

Under the terms of the deal, each campaign would agree to donate half the cost of any third-party ad to charity if that ad either supports their candidacy or attacks their opponent by name.

At least one outside group that has targeted Warren immediately raised objections to the deal.

Brown first laid out the basic terms of the deal last week, but top-level staffers for both candidates were unable to reach a final deal on Friday.

Then early Monday morning, Warren responded, saying she was ready to sign off on the deal as long as it included a few final changes, such as adding Internet advertising to the deal and closing any other loopholes that could permit third parties to help one campaign or the other by running ads.

"With an agreement to try to stop third party advertising, we can set an historic example in Massachusetts and give the people we want to represent an opportunity to make a choice free from the kind of out-of-control, outsider advertising that has plagued so many recent elections," Warren wrote.

Brown quickly agreed, and signed what he described as the "People's Pledge."

"This is a great victory for the people of Massachusetts, and a bold statement that puts Super PACs and other third parties on notice that their interference in this race will not be tolerated," Brown said in a statement.

Both campaigns then quickly pointed out that each has already been the target of outside advertising.

Referring to Warren's background as a Harvard professor, Brown said "the extreme liberal groups who planned to pollute the airwaves with their false and misleading ads in support of Professor Warren can now pack their bags and find someplace else to do their dirty work."

Brown has come under fire from the League of Conservation Voters and the League of Women Voters, which have spent a total of about $3 million on separate ad campaigns criticizing him.

The League of Women Voters' ad rapped Brown for voting with other Senate Republicans to ban the Environmental Protection Agency from controlling gases blamed for global warming. They urged Brown to "protect the people and not the polluters." Another spot by the League of Conservation Voters slammed Brown for siding with "big oil."

Neither ad mentioned Warren, who pointed to outside ads that have targeted her campaign. Crossroads GPS, an affiliate of American Crossroads, a group with ties to GOP political operative Karl Rove, has already sponsored two ads.

"Karl Rove and his Crossroads GPS have pledged to spend millions of dollars in this campaign, and he has a long history of using every trick in the book. So I sign this agreement with both hope and vigilance, and I assume you do the same," Warren wrote.

One Crossroads ad used spliced images of Warren with rowdy Occupy Wall Street protesters to claim that she "sides with extreme left" protesters who "attack police, do drugs and trash public parks." A second ad by the group then painted Warren as being too cozy with Wall Street.

The president of American Crossroads, Steven Law, quickly criticized the deal saying it fails to cover union phone banks, direct mail, and get-out-the-vote drives, "all union core specialties."

The Crossroads GPS ads and the ads from the League of Women Voters and the League of Conservation Voters would all appear to come under the terms of the agreement.

Brown's campaign has also pointed to online ads from Rethink Brown ? a political action committee formed last year. Its mission, according to its website, is "to encourage Massachusetts voters to make up their own minds about U.S. Senator Scott Brown's actual record and potentially `rethink' their initial opinions about him."

A spokesman for Warren's campaign said joint letters signed by Warren and Brown will be going out to third-party groups ? including Rethink Brown and American Crossroads ? asking them to pull their ads.

The U.S. Supreme Court has paved the way for millions of dollars in spending by super PACs following a trio of decisions capped by the landmark Citizens United case in 2010, which eased restrictions on the use of corporate money in political campaigns.

The Senate campaign is expected to be one of the costliest in state history.

Warren has reported raising $5.7 million during the final three months of 2011, eclipsing Brown's $3.2 million for the same period. Brown still enjoys an overall money advantage with $12.8 million in cash on hand, compared to the more than $6 million Warren has in her account.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/uscongress/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120123/ap_on_el_se/us_massachusetts_senate_attack_ads

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