Roberts challenger: Controversial X-ray commentary has helped me

Sen. Pat Roberts’ (R-Kan.) primary challenger, radiologist Milton Wolf, believes his off-color commentary on gruesome X-rays posted to Facebook have actually helped his campaign.

{mosads}The commentary, when reported by a local outlet earlier this year, was widely seen as having stalled his bid against Roberts. And news that a state ethics board is investigating Wolf over the postings didn’t help. Roberts has used the postings and the investigation in attack ads against Wolf, suggesting they reveal he’s “unfit for Kansans.”

But Wolf told ABC that he believes the postings have been beneficial.

“I think it has. It’s hard to show how it has hurt me, other than people from afar who think it has been a bigger issue from Kansas voters than it has,” he said.

Wolf said while he wished he could “take back” the comments, he had encountered other healthcare professionals who commiserated with the postings, which he characterized as a way to “cope” with the pressures of his job as a radiologist.

“One of the realities of this is that on the campaign trail, I’ve had so many people come up to me — other healthcare providers, first responders, police officers, folks in the military. People get that we have to joke about some of these things or it will drive us crazy,” he said.

“Those of us who deal with tragedy have to find ways to cope with it, and I’ve seen people cope with it in destructive ways. I’ve seen people led to vice, I’ve seen it tear apart marriages, I’ve seen people get burned out and walk away from the profession. If the humor I used to try and cope with it offended anyone, I apologize. My mistakes are my own. I’ll own my mistakes. If I said anything that offended anyone, I beg them for their forgiveness,” Wolf added.

Kansans will reveal whether Wolf is right in his contention that the postings have helped his long-shot bid against Roberts on Tuesday night, after polls close in the Sunflower State.