Angle distances herself from “Don’t Vote” ad

Sharron Angle distanced herself today from the controversial advertisement that urges Latinos not to vote this year.

In her first comment on the ad, the Republican U.S. Senate candidate denounced the "don't-vote" effort during an appearance on the radio show hosted by conservative Las Vegas talker Heidi Harris.

Angle noted Sen. Harry Reid "accused me of wanting not to turn out voters, which is exactly the wrong thing to do in this election. We want to turn out every voter no matter who they are."

Latinos for Reform, which is headed by a former director of Hispanic affairs at the Republican National Committee, put together the TV spot that said Hispanics should withhold their votes out of frustration that the Obama administration and Democrat-controlled Congress have failed to enact immigration reform.

Univision pulled the Spanish-language ad after it was reported on Monday and roundly condemned by Hispanic groups, both Nevada gubernatorial candidates and Democrats up to and including President Barack Obama.

During a White House interview Tuesday with nine Hispanic journalists, Obama said Latinos who withhold their vote in Nevada would hurt Reid and "reward" Angle, who he said "would never vote for immigration reform."

"I trust that Latinos in Nevada will not fall for these kinds of cynical strategies," Obama told the group, which included Hernando Amaya, the editor of El Tiempo in Las Vegas.

At a campaign rally on Tuesday, Reid laid the issue at Angle's feet. "She's trying to keep people from voting," he told students at UNLV.

Angle's campaign called Reid's accusation "a blatant, desperate lie."

"We encourage all Nevadans to vote, and they should vote for Sharron Angle," her spokesman Jarrod Agen said.

On the radio, Angle said she had "absolutely nothing" to do with the TV ad."

"We want to turn out every voter no matter who they are," she told Harris. "Yes we do, every voter."