Looks like Esch is starting to play some hard ball...

Following is a press release from the Esch campaign about Pete Ricketts' comments on Lee Terry and Congress being broken.

Esch: New Representation is the Answer

Ricketts comments are right on target, perhaps he should have run in the 2nd district primary

Omaha, NE - Jim Esch, candidate for Nebraska's second district, commented about Pete Ricketts' take on Lee Terry on a KFAB radio program yesterday. "It isn't a surprise to me that the candidate for Senate, who is running on the Republican ticket, can't think of what Lee Terry has accomplished," said Esch. "You look at Lee Terry's record and he has accomplished nearly nothing in his 8 years in office."

The transcript from Tom Becka's program is as follows:

Becka: "Let's get to some questions that have been written here, sent, called in, whatever. I wanna get to some of these questions. This one: "Lee Terry has done less than Ben Nelson in Congress. Should we vote him out too?"

Ricketts: "Well I'm not running against Lee Terry right now, and I haven't studied Lee Terry's record. Though, again, I'd say, you know, look, if you think things in Washington are broken, if you think things have to change and we can't continue to have business as usual, you can't keep sending back the same old career politicians and expect to get change. You've gotta send somebody new."

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Esch:
"I have offered plans to address Homeland Security, the burgeoning national deficit, and a forward looking plan for reliable and renewable energy," Esch commented. "I have taken a stand to not accept any Special Interest money in this election as a way to combat the influence of Special Interest groups that control this country. Lee Terry has offered little and accomplished less. Lee, like many of his counterparts, may not be directly tied to the scandals happening in Washington, but they are complicit in them because of their unwillingness to change the system."

"While, I don't agree with Pete Ricketts on many issues, he is right about Lee Terry. Ricketts missed his calling to run against someone ineffective, perhaps he should have considered the second congressional district primary and run against Terry. If Ricketts spent ten million looking into Terry's record maybe he would find something significant. Finding the lack of accomplishments associated with Lee Terry is in abundant supply."