Garcia, Emanuel Flooding Airwaves In Final Week Before Election
(CBS) -- Things are getting wild and woolly in the final week of the race for Chicago mayor.
It is shaping up to be an expensive week for both candidates as they battle for supremacy of the TV air waves.
CBS 2 Chief Correspondent Jay Levine reports Chuy Garcia's attack on billionaire Ken Griffin, Emanuel's biggest campaign contributor, turned into a three-ring circus.
"We stand today in front of one of the businesses owned by one of the lead characters in the pay to play politics in the city of Chicago," Garcia said.
The sidewalk theater featured a circling Emanuel campaign van and hot sandwiches to soften the billionaire's lofty image, though the free lunch had no effect on Garcia's message.
"Refusing to accept political contributions from city employees and limiting contributions from entities that have done business with the city in the previous four years or are looking to do business with the city," Garcia said.
Garcia may be fighting an uphill battle as the latest Tribune poll shows the mayor growing his lead over Garcia, now at 58-38.
Mayor Emanuel addressed a quarterly summit on crime and announced he is picking up the pace, despite the polls, telling his campaign staff, "Put the papers away, double my schedule between now and the election. I want to make sure we are out every day earning people's support."
Or saturating the airwaves. Chuy this week is spending $600,000 and Rahm a whopping $1.4 million in part on ads claiming Garcia mismanaged Little Village community group.
The ad shows a clip of Garcia claiming the organization was in the black and shows tax forms which dispute that.
"The deficit that was in place when I left was simply an accounting reality," Garcia said.
