WASHINGTON – An anti-tax group said Tuesday it is will run television ads likening the media and their reporting on Majority Leader Tom DeLay (search) to sharks in a feeding frenzy.
The ads will run on select television stations nationally, including in Houston, close to DeLay's hometown in Texas, the group said.
The ads were purchased by Free Enterprise Fund, a nonprofit group that advocates for economic growth through lower taxes and limited government.
The group's president, Mallory Factor, would not disclose how much the group will spend on the ads but said the cost will be "well over $100,000." The group does not yet now how long it will run the ads.
Factor said the "liberal media and government" have been attacking free market principles and DeLay, who supports their principles.
"It's a feeding frenzy on DeLay and we want to expose it," Factor said.
DeLay spokesman Dan Allen declined to comment because he had not seen the ads.
He has been battling criticism of his ethics as questions have been raised about his overseas travel, fundraising for a political committee he helped start in Texas and associations with a lobbyist now under federal criminal investigation.
DeLay has denied any wrongdoing and has said repeatedly he is willing to present his side to House ethics committee leaders.
In March, two liberal groups launched TV ads demanding that DeLay resign as House majority leader and urging fellow congressmen to mobilize against him.
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