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Political mailing links Democratic opponent for House seat to Bush

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A mailing sent out late this week by Rob Miller, a Lady's Island Democrat running for the 2nd Congressional District House seat, linked his Democratic primary opponent to the Bush administration. Miller will face Blaine Lotz of Hilton Head Island in the June 10 primary.

Lotz, who in 1998 was appointed assistant to the secretary of defense for intelligence oversight during the Clinton administration, served under Defense secretaries William Cohen and Donald Rumsfeld.

The Miller mailing has a picture of Lotz next to cutouts ofRumsfeld's and Bush's heads. It calls Lotz a "Bush Administration insider."

Lotz's campaign manager, Trav Robertson, sent an e-mail late Friday responding to the mailing:

"Blaine's job was to provide oversight of the process and make sure that intelligence was gathered legally according to the guidelines set forth by Congress," the e-mail reads. "He didn't analyze intelligence or provide any intelligence to leadership, his job was to make sure safeguards were being followed during the process.

"When Rumsfeld and the new political appointees came in during the Bush administration, Blaine and the other career civilians were pushed aside, their offices were moved, and their advice was not heeded," Robertson wrote.

Robertson pointed to a 2005 NBC story in which Lotz protestedthe lack of oversight of intelligence gatherers.

Miller's campaign manager, Lachlan McIntosh, said Lotz, as a top intelligence official serving during a time where intelligence failures were rampant, could have resigned in protest.

In an interview Friday, Robertson said, "It (the mailing) really is an affront to all the people in the 2nd district -- people who have called out consistently for positive change."

The 2nd District seat is currently held by Republican Joe Wilson.

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