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As the March primary approaches, one Republican lawmaker fighting to keep her seat in the Illinois Senate has brought up an unsavory moment in her GOP opponent's recent past: his DUI arrest which was caught on tape.
In an ad posted earlier this month on YouTube, state Senator Carole Pankau (R-Itasca) featured video of her opponent, state Rep. Randy Ramey's, August 2011 DUI arrest. The 30-second spot is titled "Representative Randy Ramey: 'Drunk with Power.'"
In the ad, a police officer is seen asking Ramey, "You feel you're OK to drive right now?" Ramey responds, "Probably not." The video then shows Ramey completing a field sobriety test and asking the officers, "Do you know who I am?" -- a soundbite repeated three times in the ad.
According to St. Louis Today, Pankau obtained the police video by submitting a Freedom of Information Act request.
Ramey said the ad"sets a new standard in lowness," according to NBC Chicago.
Pankau told the station that Ramey has to live with his public record and has no one to blame but himself for its contents. Her public record, too, she said, is available for anyone who wants to see it.
Ramey, the DuPage County GOP chairman, was pulled over early Aug. 28 on his way home from a restaurant and bar for improper lane usage after police observed him crossing the center line. A breathalyzer test registered his blood-alcohol content at 0.17 percent, more than twice the legal limit. The representative pleaded guilty to the charge and was fined $1,750 and ordered to perform 100 hours of community service.
As Daily Herald reports, the Pankau-Ramey race for the 23rd District is one of the more heated Republican primary battles culminating March 20, as it is one of few examples of two incumbent lawmakers going head-to-head.