Unfazed if he helps re-elect Harry Reid, claims GOP nominee ‘lies’



Scott Ashjian, the independent Tea Party candidate in Nevada’s US Senate race, reportedly showed up to an interview with ABC News in a lavish black Mercedes Benz.

“I met with Ashjdian in Las Vegas,” reported ABC’s Jonathan Karl, “where the self-described Tea Party candidate he showed up to our interview in his black Mercedes Benz S63 AMG (MSRP $138,000) and spent much of the interviewing explaining why he believes [Republican nominee Sharron] Angle is a worse candidate than Reid.”

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Donning a luxurious car to a high-profile national interview may be an unwise strategic move for a candidate promising to represent a movement that presents itself as a grassroots, bottom-up populist operation.

Ashjian, who is seizing upon the Tea Party mantle, told Karl he’d be “at peace” if he takes away enough votes from Angle — an early Tea Party favorite — so as to help Reid win the election and retain his seat.

“Sharron Angle lies on her issues,” Ashjian said. “She’s come off 100 percent of where she was in the beginning when I supported her, compared to where she is today.”

He called Angle a “consummate politician” whose agenda isn’t what she presents it as. The Tea Party independent has no love for Reid, yet he had kinder words for the GOP’s nemesis.

“At least with Harry Reid, you know what you got,” Ashjian explained, while also fiercely criticizing the Democratic leader. “As far as competence goes, or maybe, intellect goes, Harry Reid is probably a smarter person than Angle.”

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Reid and Angle are neck and neck in the polls, with Ashjian too far behind to be considered a serious contender. But he remains on the ballot, and even if he wins a small percentage of votes it could influence the outcome of the race, as those votes are likely to come out of Angle’s total.

Ashjian’s comments — and refusal to exit the race — are likely to infuriate the conservative faithful, for whom ousting Reid is such a top priority that GOP-affiliated groups nationwide have helped Angle set an extraordinary third-quarter fundraising record of $14 million.