Google and Yahoo Block Hutchison Site from Search Results

Use of disallowed tactic indicative of senator’s desperation

Texans for Rick Perry released the following statement last week:

On July 30, web watchers discovered that a Web site owned and operated by Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison has been blocked from the world’s two largest search engines for violating their policies on using hidden text.

“It is reassuring that Google and Yahoo had the sense to ban Sen. Hutchison’s attempt at more anonymous dirty tricks and under-handed black hat tactics. This is remarkable third-party validation that Sen. Hutchison is taking the low road in a campaign that should be about the issues. We look forward to the senator breaking her embarrassed silence with an apology to Gov. Perry.”

The Web site blunder is the latest in a string of mis-steps by a campaign that observers agree is clearly in disarray.

Tech blogs picked up on Hutchison's unsavory activity and explained just how this sort of unethical behavior from the Senator resulted in her new site being blacklisted. One in particular, ars technica, explained that Senator Hutchison's tactics were a "good way to get the wrong kind of attention."

The popular blog BoingBoing described Hutchison's fate as "Google and Yahoo's death penalty," and for good reason.

GadgetCrave piled on by saying, "Here’s a lesson: If you’re running for governor, don’t load your Web site with hidden terms pertaining to rumors about your opponent’s sexuality. So it went in Texas, where U.S. Senator and gubernatorial candidate Kay Hutchinson saw her Web site get blacklisted from Yahoo and Google searches."

Another tech blog called search engine land offered the senator a free crash course on search engine optimization, saying, "Hidden text is not only against the search engine guidelines and can get you banned, but is amateur and lazy. It’s like hiring a painter to paint your house and having them show up and throw a bucket of paint in the general direction of your walls."

It is worse than that; perpetuating these types of patently absurd rumors violates every code of campaign conduct. For someone who began her campaign as a self-described "happy warrior," it seems especially unfortunate that she took such a low road so early.

Another blog, the New Ledger, explained that, "It’s never a good week when your campaign site ends up getting banned by Google."

Days later, Senator Hutchison has yet to offer an apology, only blame and more attacks against Governor Perry.