Ben Quayle, 33-year old lawyer and son of former Vice President Dan Quayle, is running for the Republican nomination for House candidate in Arizona’s third Congressional District. Given his family name and fundraising prowess, he is widely considered a “top tier” candidate by the local press and is expected by many to have a good chance of winning the nomination. As a part of his campaign strategy, Quayle has started to send out mailers emblazened with his slogan, “A New Generation.” In one of these mailers, Quayle poses with two young girls — one seated in his lap and another holding his hand. Below the picture of Quayle and the children is a quotation by the candidate: “My roots in Arizona run deep. My grandparents and great grandparents lived in this district. My parents and all of my siblings live in this district. Tiffany [his wife] and I live in this district and are going to raise our family here.” View a copy of the mailer:
It’s easy to draw the conclusion that the two girls Quayle is posing with are his daughters. Yet, as the Arizona Capitol Times points out, “that’s not the case.” The recently-married Quayle doesn’t have kids. “I think you guys have got a lot of time on your hands,” said Quayle campaign spokesman Damon Moley in response to the paper’s fact-checking. “They’re just terribly cute kids.” RedState’s Erick Erickson isn’t amused. He writes this morning, “I see this frequently from young candidates. I can’t believe mail designers still pull this trick. It is silly.”