Republicans are pressuring local TV stations not to air campaign ads for Democratic candidates or their allies.
There's been a "pattern of lies, distortions, and falsehoods being pushed by Democratic organizations, candidates, and allies," according to the National Republican Congressional Committee, which asked station managers to "exercise due diligence" when deciding to air campaign commercials this fall.
"As station manager, you are certainly in no way obligated to air these ads and we would encourage you to exercise due diligence in investigating claims and accusations made before airing any ads created by Democrat organizations, candidates, or allies," Jessica Furst, general counsel for the NRCC, wrote in a letter sent Thursday to station managers in media markets where Democrats have reserved air time.
Furst cites a Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee ad aired against GOP Rep. Charles Djou before the May special-election vote in Hawaii. She also cites ads by Reps. Zack Space (D-Ohio) and Ben Chandler (D-Ky.) , the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees and other liberal groups.
"We request that you exercise your right, consistent with FCC regulations, to reject any attempt by a candidate, political party, or third-party group to purchase time for an advertisement that communicates misleading and blatantly false messages such as those discussed above," Furst wrote.
"In most cases, you can insist that false statements be corrected before your station runs the ad. We trust that you agree that advertisements containing material misstatements of fact intended to deceive voters have no place on your station's airwaves."
Gov. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) is wasting no time going after his Republican opponent in the state's special election for Senate, taking aim at businessman John Raese with his campaign's first TV ad.
It's a no-frills 30-second spot with Manchin looking straight into the camera and hitting Raese for running a negative campaign.
"This campaign has just begun and John Raese is attacking me just like he attacked Senator Byrd," Manchin says in the ad. "Washington is filled with people like John Raese who tear other people down. No wonder we're in this mess."
The popular governor was expected to have an easy road in the special election after Rep. Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) decided against challenging him. But Raese is largely self-funding his bid and has already spent heavily on TV ads. The latest Rasmussen poll in the race only gave Manchin a six-point lead.
Manchin and Raese are battling for the right serve out the remainder of the term of the late Sen. Robert Byrd (D).
In yet another sign that the midterm playing field is rapidly expanding, Rep. Phil Hare (D-Ill.) is launching an ad hitting his Republican opponent, businessman Bobby Schilling.
Hare was first elected in 2006 and didn't run a single campaign ad during the 2008 cycle when he ran unopposed for reelection.
Republicans have been touting Schilling's chances, releasing an internal poll in late August that claimed Schilling was just two points behind the incumbent.
Hare's ad hits Schilling over a proposed trade deal with South Korea, which Schilling backs. "First, Washington sent our jobs to Mexico," Hare says in the ad. "Then, they gave most favored nation status to China and good American jobs like these disappeared."
Schilling’s campaign manager told the Quad-City Times the ad is a sign that Schilling is closing in on Hare in the Democratic-leaning district.
Ohio Senate candidate Lee Fisher (D) waited until after Labor Day to release his first TV ad of the campaign, and it's not a gentle biographical introduction.
The lieutenant governor goes straight after Republican rival Rob Portman's Washington resume, using his first ad since the May primary to link the former congressman to George W. Bush and China.
"Congressman Rob Portman knows how to grow the economy … in China," the announcer says in the spot. "On his watch as Bush's trade czar our deficit with China exploded, sending a 100,000 Ohio jobs overseas."
The ad, which starts airing Thursday, was produced by AKPD Message and Media, according to a Fisher spokeswoman.
It is "a significant statewide buy … that encompasses more than cable," Lynne Bowman, Fisher's campaign manager, said on a conference call with reporters.
She defended the decision to wait until September to go up on the air.
"We wanted to save our resources and our time on TV until after Labor Day, when we think it will be most effective for the campaign," Bowman said.
Portman has owned the airwaves since the primary, having released four TV ads without a response from Fisher. This is the Democrat’s first attempt at changing the conversation.
Recent polls show he needs to respond: A survey for the Columbus Dispatch had him trailing Portman by 13 points.
New Hampshire Senate candidate Paul Hodes (D) compares Washington to a hotdog eating contest on the Lake Winnipesaukee Pier in his latest TV ad.
"This is what I see every day in Congress," Hodes, a two-term member of the House, says as he strolls in front of a row of five men scarfing down hotdogs.
Hodes had been hitting Republican Kelly Ayotte in his earlier TV spots, but he switched to a more positive tone as the GOP Senate primary became more competitive.
Former Georgia Gov. Roy Barnes (D) unleashed a hard-hitting attack ad Tuesday against former Rep. Nathan Deal (R) in the state's race for governor.
Barnes is seizing on the recent flap over Deal's tax returns, which the Republican released last week amid pressure from his opponent.
Deal resigned his House seat in March to focus on his campaign for governor, but the retirement also came after the Office of Congressional Ethics said he had improperly described income from his family's salvage business.
The 30-second spot from Barnes charges that "secrets are hidden in the details" of Deal's returns.
"That's why he resigned from Congress at midnight," the ad's narrator says. "Nathan Deal — too corrupt, even for Congress."
Deal narrowly won a runoff last month over Karen Handel for the right to take on Barnes. Deal received some prominent backing from two rumored Republican presidential hopefuls — former House Speaker Newt Gingrich and former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee.
Spending on political and issue ads ahead of the 2010 midterm elections is already approaching $1 billion, and one analyst predicts it's on track to reach $3 billion by November.
Ad Age has an interview with CMAG's Evan Tracey, who tracks political ad spending. Tracey said $864 million has already been spent this cycle, some $50 million more than was spent at this point in the 2008 election cycle.
"Historically, two-thirds of all election spending comes during the final 60 days, so we are on track to approach $3 billion in total spending on political and issue ads," Tracey told Ad Age.
The spending binge is being aided by self-funded candidates like Meg Whitman (R) in California and Linda McMahon (R) in Connecticut, as well as the Supreme Court's recent decision in the Citizens United case, which lifted restrictions on corporate and union spending.
Pennsylvania Democrat Joe Sestak's campaign unearthed footage of Republican Senate candidate Pat Toomey saying, "let's not tax corporations." The Sestak camp incorporated the footage into its new TV ad, which calls Toomey "Wall Street’s congressman."
Toomey’s suggestion about eliminating corporate taxes would have been popular with Club for Growth supporters, the anti-tax group he once led. But it gives Democrats more ammunition in their effort to tie him to Wall Street. Earlier this month, Democrats were circulating footage of Toomey talking about derivatives, financial contracts used by traders. This attack, however, seems more easily digestible.
The Sestak camp said the ad is up on cable and broadcast throughout the state, but it is not airing in Philadelphia.
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