Rhode Island Senate candidate Barry Hinckley (R) is using a new tactic to turn the heads of voters: his five-year-old son.
Hudson Hinkley is the star of his dad's new campaign ad, titled "Economics for five year olds." Armed with a permanent marker and an blank sheet of paper, the pint-sized politico points out the differences in the U.S. economy in the the five years since his birth.
"Do you know the gas my mom uses to bring me to school?" Hudson asks, pointing to a gas prices chart. "It's a lot more expensive now."
"This is real bad," he says looming into the camera.
The ad is the latest in Hinckley's campaign against incumbent Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.). Last week the Republican candidate released an attack ad painting a dumbed-down caricature of his opponent and Vice President Biden.
Pointing to a hand-drawn report card, Hudson subtly calls out Whitehouse saying Rhode Island needs a change from "career politicians."
"Five-year-olds, are you better off now than you were five years ago?" Hudson asks, deadpanned. "Well the report cards are out, but it's not so good for the career politicians."
Considered by some as a long shot against Whitehouse, Hinckley looks to this ad as a wake-up call for voters.
And while the use of his son as a warning isn't as jarring as the use of children in political ads of the past, Hudson Hinkley's message to voters paints his dad as a candidate who has the concerns of families on his political agenda.
"Career politicians, both Democrat and Republican, are to blame for our current economic problems," Hinckley said in a statement. "Still, the political elites have not yet woken up. ‘Economics for Five Year Olds’ shows that the failure of our current politicians carries real consequences for Rhode Island’s children and families."
