Walsh hits Daines on Medicare in new Montana ad

Sen. John Walsh (D-Mont.) is using a trio of elderly women to attack Rep. Steve Daines (R-Mont.) on Medicare in his latest ad, targeting a key demographic in his uphill battle to retain his seat.

{mosads}”We rely on Medicare to survive,” one of the seniors says in the ad. “We were so disappointed when Congressman Daines voted to cut Medicare benefits while cutting taxes for multi-millionaires like himself,” the others chime in.

The ad, first shared with The Hill, then cuts to Walsh, who says the country needs to lower its debt but argues he and Daines have “different priorities.”

Walsh, who was appointed to the Senate earlier this year, has trailed Daines by double digits in most public polls of the race in the Republican-leaning state. He needs to make inroads with senior voters and women to close that gap.

He’s also looking to take a page out of Sen. Jon Tester’s (D-Mont.) 2012 playbook, painting his opponent as an out-of-touch elitist. So far, that hasn’t been as effective against Daines as it was against former Rep. Denny Rehberg (R-Mont.).

Both sides have been on the air early looking to define one another. Daines is going on the air with a new ad featuring a pink-haired cancer survivor attacking Walsh on Medicare Monday evening.

This post was updated at 5:00 p.m.