When it comes to groups politicians don't want backing them, pedophiles probably fall somewhere in between the Aryan Brotherhood and suicide bombers. So calling self-described pedophile Lindsay Ashford's endorsement undesired might be a bit of an understatement. Unfortunately, when you're Barack Obama, the Zack Morris of the Democratic party, you don't really get to pick and choose your friends.

Ashford and Obama have an acrimonious history. Last March, Obama's camp got word that the senator's daughters appeared on Ashford's blog in a post meant to "predict the next president ... based upon what lovely First Daughter we can look forward to watching grow up for four to eight years." Obama promptly sicced his lawyers on the politically savvy perv, and Ashford was served a cease and desist letter. He eventually complied, removing the pictures of the Obamas but keeping those of other candidates and their respective daughters—and even granddaughters. Still, Ashford refused to remove his support of Obama.

In another entry, he explained: "Quite a few people have asked me why I continue to support Barack Obama despite his actions against me. The answer is quite simple. There are quite a few more issues at stake than his opinion of me and my website. Obama is unequivocally against the illegal occupation of Iraq. He is unashamedly in favour of putting important social programmes ahead of corporatist policies. He seems genuinely concerned about the issue of the rampant corruption in Washington, D.C. He has a good record on environmental issues."