A conservative political action committee is going up with a new television commercial — backed by a $1.7 million ad buy — slamming President Obama's energy policies.
The ad, titled "Too Much," accuses the president of taking credit for increased oil production that was put into motion by the George W. Bush administration. The Crossroads GPS super-PAC — backed by Bush adviser Karl Rove — said the commercial would air in Colorado, Florida, Iowa, Nevada, Ohio and Virginia, all expected to be pivotal swing states in the coming election.
“President Obama’s ‘hope and change’ has deteriorated into hype and blame — puffing up his record and blaming others for policy failures,” said Crossroads GPS President Steven Law. “This ad sets the record straight and calls for real solutions to sky-high gas prices, not more political spin.”
Gas prices have become an increasingly prominent issue in recent months as oil has hit unseasonably high peaks. Republican candidates, including Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich, have strongly criticized the president for his energy policy and suggested increased drilling in offshore and federally owned lands could drive down prices.
A Washington Post/ABC News poll released Tuesday shows that 62 percent of those surveyed disapprove of the way Obama is addressing rising prices at the pump, with 28 percent approving.
Crossroads GPS has hammered the president on his administration's energy policy throughout the year, with commercials highly critical of the administration's support of federal loan guarantees for failed solar energy company Solyndra.
Solyndra declared bankruptcy last fall, laying off some 1,100 workers and incensing Republicans, who accused the administration of approving the loan to help political supporters.
A year-long investigation conducted by House Republicans has found no evidence that politics influenced the administration's decision to issue the Solyndra loan guarantee. But the probe has uncovered details that are uncomfortable and potentially politically damaging for the White House, including that officials raised questions about the wisdom of approving the loan.
In February, Law issued a memo outlining the group's strategy of tying the Obama administration to Solyndra.
"Advocates on the center-right need to engage that debate in both moral and economic terms, showing that Obama’s Washington is an unfair place, and less of Obama’s invasive, free-spending and chronically politicized government is the solution," Law said in the memo.
