It was only a matter of time before the mudslinging began.

A set of shady digital ads have started popping up on computer screens as people are surfing the Internet, and I wanted to take a minute and set the record straight.

As Stacey Abrams, the Democratic nominee for Governor of Georgia, herself noted in her brave piece, three-quarters of Americans are weighed down by some type of debt. I’m one of those people.

The cowardly ads being run by the Michigan Republican Party accuse me of not paying my taxes. As with most political attacks, that’s not true nor is it the full story. In my story, tax debt was the result of a successful year with a small company. I know, just typing that sentence sounds funny. When contracts were coming in, our small company hired more people. Revenue was booked in one year while expenses accumulated in another. I was praised for being a job creator.

Then came the hiccups that anyone who has actually run a business knows. Sometimes things happen outside of your control. A client doesn’t pay on time. A contract is canceled because they move in a different direction.

A tax bill comes due. Payments still comes due.

Other people’s families still need a paycheck regardless of things outside of my control. Instead of wallowing in what should have been, I rolled up my sleeves and found a solution. I signed a contract with Uncle Sam to pay down the tax debt I owed month by month. I kept my word and have made regular payments. I have a few thousand dollars left to pay.

I’m paying my taxes — all of them. That’s more than can be said of some of America’s largest corporations. I guess I just wasn’t big enough to get some special tax break. However, I still need to take care of my family.

I’m not shy about how fiercely I’ll protect my children. When people ask what I do, the first three things I mention are that I’m a momma bear, a basketball mom, and my children’s first teacher. As any mother knows — regardless of their political party — we will move heaven and earth to make sure our children have what they need. The people running these ads seem to think it would have been a better financial or moral choice to take out more loans, not purchase the home my three children needed after the divorce, or for them just to go hungry. Shame on the people running these ads for implying my children deserve anything less than what they’re giving their children.

Debt shaming small business owners who utilize the option of a tax payment plan, create jobs, and make good on their debts says more about the people throwing the mud than the millions of people like me who agree to pay what we owe and make good on our promises. I’m also saying a prayer that voters are going to care more about a state representative who makes good on her promises than one who condones telling someone else’s children to go without.

In a recent opinion column, Michelle Goldberg of the New York Times wrote, “The financial problems of poor and middle-class people are treated as moral failings, while rich people’s debt is either ignored or spun as a sign of intrepid entrepreneurialism.”

Apparently, I just wasn’t rich enough for the shady mudslingers to consider my debt “a sign of intrepid entrepreneurialism.” I’m not holding my breath that my Republican opponent, the Michigan Republican party, or any of their supposedly pro-business allies will come to the defense of a real, breathing small businesswoman who creates jobs and restructures her tax obligations.

When I knock on doors, one of the most common things people say to me after hearing how I want to reduce class sizes, make healthcare more affordable, and protect our water is something like, “I can’t believe you’re willing to do this because politics are so dirty.” I can’t argue with them. I just wish my children didn’t have to see attacks like this.

Like many other difficult conversations I’ve had with my three children, we were prepared for something like this. I told them they’re going to see people say things about me that aren’t fair. I also told them to trust the voters. Do not be disparaged because someone says disparaging remarks. Keep your head up. Work hard.

We can disagree on policy but don’t try to shame me for being a successful businesswoman and a mom. Shame on the people peddling these misleading ads.

Alberta Griffin is the Democratic nominee for the Michigan 61st House District.

albertagriffin61st.com

Paid for by the Committee to Elect Alberta Griffin P.O. Box 1433, Portage MI, 49081