Dems' North Dakota Senate recruit spoofs Chamber ad

When the U.S. Chamber of Commerce went on the air in 20 congressional races last week, one of the candidates they boosted was Rep. Rick Berg, the North Dakota Republican now running for Senate. The Chamber spend about $200,000 touting Berg's support for the Keystone XL pipeline, which President Obama blocked last month.

The problem, according to Democrat Heidi Heitkamp: She too supports the pipeline, and said as much to Obama in a letter last month urging him to reverse course.

Heitkamp's campaign released a video Tuesday spoofing the Chamber ad by replacing her likeness and name every time Berg is mentioned in the original ad.

The video even photoshops Heitkamp's face onto photos of Berg smiling in a suit in front of a flag.

"Heidi Heitkamp opposes the president and supports the Keystone XL pipeline. She supports creating jobs here at home," the ad says, with a comical, low-pitched voice superimposing her name over the original narration.

"Heidi-who?" said Blair Latoff, a spokeswoman for the Chamber, in an email. "Does she also agree with the U.S. Chamber that Obamacare should be repealed? Because in 2010 she actively campaigned for it."

And Republicans dismissed the spoof as an attempt to distract from policy issues, such as President Obama's budget and a controversy over contraception coverage, where they said Heitkamp had failed to take a stand.

"I guess if this Senate race were to be judged on who can best spoof a TV commercial on YouTube, then Heidi Heitkamp might just have the upper hand," said National Republican Senatorial Committee spokesman Lance Trover. "Thank goodness that’s not the case."

Watch the spoof:

Watch the original ad:

- This story was posted at 5:07 p.m. and has been updated.