Fitz camp responds to Raja ad

We told you yesterday about the campaign ads the D. Raja county executive campaign would start airing today. Democrat Rich Fitzgerald's campaign released a line-by-line rebuttal to the ad today, largely going over criticisms of Raja's tech business and tax slipups that we've seen before.

"Raja refuses to tell the people of Allegheny County that his real record on jobs includes outsourcing hard working Americans' jobs overseas and refusing to pay his own workers the minimum wage or overtime," Fitzgerald campaign manager Mike Mikus said. "He can talk all he
wants but it won't change the fact that he got rich by sending jobs overseas."

Raja's spokesman Mark Harris responded: "We will put Raja's record creating hundreds of family sustaining jobs against Rich's jobs record any day."

The full Fitzgerald camp statement is after the jump:

Republican candidate for County Executive D. Raja today launched a misleading commercial in an attempt to mask his business record of as a job destroyer by outsourcing American jobs overseas. Raja's company also was cited by the U.S. Department of Labor for failing to pay his workers the minimum wage and denying them overtime pay.

"Raja refuses to tell the people of Allegheny County that his real record on jobs includes outsourcing hard working Americans' jobs overseas and refusing to pay his own workers the minimum wage or overtime," Rich Fitzgerald's campaign manager Mike Mikus said. "He can talk all he wants but it won't change the fact that he got rich by sending jobs overseas."

The Facts:

Raja's Rhetoric
Raja's Reality

VO: Meet Raja

VO: A record of creating jobs in Allegheny County.
Raja became wealthy by running a company that ships American jobs overseas [Hindu Business Line 02/25/05]. In fact, Raja's company website boasts that "CEI's vision is to be the #1 services provider in contracting projects and outsourcing..." [www.ceiamerica.com]

VO: An innovator who has cut taxes and spending and will do the same in county government
As Mt. Lebanon Commissioner, Raja cast the deciding vote to implement a new sewage tax. [Mt. Lebanon Commission Budget Hearing, November 29, 2010] Raja also voted spend Mt. Lebanon's entire "rainy day" fund. [Mt Lebanon Commission Minutes, [12/14/09]

Raja: I'm a businessman, not a career politician. I love Allegheny County and I'll implement great ideas here -- from natural-gas buses to an airport innovation zone to create jobs and revenue.
When Raja ran for Township Commissioner, he promised to create a "Beverly/Washington Road Technology Corridor" but it never happened. [Tribune-Review 08/19/11]. He also promised a 20% tax cut but never even tried to pass the tax cut. [Tribune-Review, 09/05/11]

VO: Vision and Integrity. That's Raja for Allegheny County Executive

Raja was illegally claiming Homestead Exemptions. He also paid his Allegheny County property taxes late in 2011. [Post-Gazette, 06/08/11] In addition, Raja paid penalties for paying his property taxes late on his Washington County and had a property tax lien filed against him in 2009 [Tribune-Review, 07/07/11]

Raja's company was cited by the U.S. Department of Labor for failing to pay the minimum wage and overtime to his employees. As a result, he was force to pay $133,000 in back wages to the employees whose rights he vioalated. [Tribune-Review, 08/05/11]

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