Did The Coffman Campaign Go Negative - on Coffman?

A friend who knows of my support for Jason Kander in the race for the 44th District handed me the above mailer, and asked what I thought of it. The black and yellow (nature's warning colors), the grainy black-and-white photo, the highlighted, all-caps "EVIL LOBBYISTS", and even the bright yellow CAUTION. At first glance, this piece appears to be an attack on Ms. Coffman.

On second glance, too, the piece seems to be attacking Coffman. It attempts to identify Amy Coffman as an "advocate", but acknowledges that "Often, the difference between a lobbyist and an advocate is simply that an advocate lobbies for an issue you support." This sage piece of wisdom appears directly next to a WARNING that "You Can't Always Believe What You Hear". Double-talk next to a warning like that? Really?

Political observers are probably surprised to see Amy Coffman's return address show up on the front of the card, along with a claim that it was "Paid for by Friends of Theresa Garza". That, along with the use of first person language on the piece, provokes concerns about whether there is a little bit of Koster-like coordination between committees that are legally banned from coordinating their efforts.

The subtle insider joke appears, though, in the form of a grammatical error at the bottom of the piece. "We need more, not less, elected officials . . ."? English teachers throughout the district are shouting "more, not FEWER!!!!" (Struggles with written expression have dogged the campaign.)

Remember when I called upon all candidates to eschew third-party mailings in this race? I was speaking from a position of idealism then - now I realize I was offering practical advice, as well.