Starting today, our campaign is running a powerful critique of Tammy Baldwin's voting record on protecting children from sex predators in a new television ad (scroll up to see ad).

The ad highlights Baldwin's vote to support an amendment to the 2005 Children's Safety Act that would have deleted the 5-year mandatory minimum sentence for a sex offender who crosses state lines but fails to properly register in the new state, and would also have deleted the 5-year mandatory minimum for anyone who makes false statements in a sexual abuse investigation.

On Tuesday, 2nd Congressional District moms joined me at a news conference in Madison to unveil the new ad and express their shock and dismay over Baldwin's vote.

"This vote was not acceptable to me, and it should not be acceptable to any parent," Stoughton mom Jerri Kittleson said. "I'm here to let mothers, fathers, grandparents know about the Tammy Baldwin record, and to realize there is an alternative. That alternative is Dave Magnum. I trust Dave to make decisions that are in the best interests of my child."

"From the moment each one of my children was first placed in my arms, my only thought was how I could protect these kids," Helen Jones of Waunakee stated. "One of my biggest fears is that somebody would take one of my children. Anything we can do to prevent that, as a society we should take those steps. To me, this amendment is a no-brainer. I'm here to ask all the voters in the 2nd Congressional District to vote for Dave, to protect our families and to protect our most valuable assets - our children."

According to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, at least 100,000 sex offenders are 'lost' and unaccounted for because they are not properly registered in their state of residence.

A mandatory minimum sentence acts as a deterrent by encouraging fast registration, which in turn helps law enforcers keep track of sex predators. My opponent blindly put her faith and the safety of our kids solely in the hands of judges. She tried to gut this bill by taking away the threat of being locked up for ignoring the law.

Judges offer no guarantee of punishment and can only respond after the fact. My opponent voted to remove the 'safety net' of mandatory prison time, and that is simply unconscionable. Parents throughout the district that I speak with about my opponent's vote are outraged, and with good reason.