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By Damian Mann Mail Tribune October 28. 2014 4:13PM Ads attack Dotterrer and Bates attack ads State Senate candidate Dave Dotterrer has come under fire for negative ads against Sen. Alan Bates, but now a series of third-party attack ads have been lobbed at Dotterrer himself.  “I think it’s hypocritical for Alan Bates to say he’s proud of his campaign when he’s using surrogates to mount attacks against me,” said Dotterrer, a Republican. The TV ads and mailers against Dotterrer are being prepared by the Democratic Party of Oregon, Planned Parenthood and Oregon Priorities PAC, but not the Committee to Elect Alan Bates. Bates, D-Medford, said he didn’t know about the ads directed at Dotterrer. Bates himself has been the target recently of at least one third-party attack mailer. The Oregon Right To Life PAC sent out a mailer depicting a five-month-old unborn fetus and describing how Bates supports abortion at all times during the full nine months of pregnancy. The mailer urges voters to support Dotterrer. Bates said he became aware of the mailers and ads directed against Dotterrer on Tuesday. “Frankly, the number one thing is, I didn’t know about those and will call those organizations and tell them to stop,” he said. “I will apologize to Dave for that.” Bates has made a point of saying he’s not going to go negative this campaign and has accused Dotterrer over the past few months of running a series of negative ads. Dotterrer said the ads he sponsored are critiques of Bates’ voting record and are not personal attacks. As for the Oregon Right to Life mailer directed against Bates, Dotterrer said he wasn’t aware of it and doesn’t support it. He said the mailer doesn’t appear to accurately portray his feelings on the issue of women’s choice. “That shocks and surprises me,” Dotterrer said. “I’ve never seen any of this and didn’t know anything about it.” Attack mailers that have been circulating for a couple of weeks, along with TV ads, are largely out of the control of candidates because they are produced by independent political action committees. A mailer paid for by the Democratic Party of Oregon blasts Dotterrer for opposing criminal background checks on all gun sales and depicts a sinister-looking crook in a photo. “Don’t let guns near criminals and abusers,” the mailer says. “Vote no on Dave Dotterrer.” In fact, Dotterrer does support background checks on gun sales. “I’ve always supported that,” he said. The Firearms Federation in its endorsements gives Bates an “F” and Dotterrer a “B+.” Brad Martin, executive director of the Democratic Party of Oregon, said, “We stand behind the mailer.” He said the Oregon Firearms Federation has contributed $5,500 to Dotterrer’s campaign and gave him a very high endorsement. “The Oregon Firearms Federation is the single largest opponent to background checks,” he said. “Kevin Starrett (executive director of the Firearms Federation) gave the money because he said Dotterrer is key to this issue in the upcoming legislative session.” Despite Bates’ opposition to negative ads, Martin said, “I certainly respect the senator greatly.” Another mailer from Planned Parenthood tries to paint Dotterrer as being completely against a woman’s right to choose. The mailer cites a quote from Dennis Richardson, the Republican candidate for governor, “A woman relinquishes her unfettered right to control her own body when her actions cause the conception of a baby.” However, the Richardson quote was made in 1990, well before Dotterrer even met his Republican colleague. Dotterrer said he supports abortion in cases of rape, incest or when a woman’s life is in danger. Dotterrer said that in a brief conversation with Oregon Right to Life, he thought the organization understood he wasn’t in 100-percent agreement with them. Oregon Priorities PAC (Democratic) has also released a couple of videos that criticize Dotterrer for supporting legislative budget policies that were agreed upon by both Democrats and Republicans. In one of the ads, a Mail Tribune article is mentioned to bolster the criticism, but on closer examination, Dotterrer is never mentioned in the actual article. The ad appears to lay the blame on Dotterrer for cuts to education and tax breaks for big corporations even though he wasn’t part of the legislative leadership group responsible for budget deals. At the time, Dotterrer worked as an aide to Rep. Dennis Richardson. Reach Damian Mann at 541-776-4476 or [email protected]. Follow on Twitter at @reporterdm. http://www.mailtribune.com/article/20141028/NEWS/141029644 © 2015 Copyright © 1995-2011 Crain Communications Inc. All Rights Reserved. Terms of Use Privacy Statement -->