New ad slams Bayh on Wall Street, lobbying links

by Alexander Bolton - 10/06/16 11:22 AM ET

A top Republican outside group is targeting former Sen. Evan Bayh (D-Ind.) with a new ad accusing him of cashing in after leaving Congress.

{mosads}Bayh is running to reclaim his old seat and has a slim lead in a competitive race with Rep. Todd Young (R-Ind.) in the race to replace retiring Sen. Dan Coats (R).

The Senate Leadership Fund, a group linked to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), connects Bayh to big business and lobbying in the new ad, entitled “Sway.”

“Evan Bayh went from the Banking Committee to a big bank board room, making millions on corporate boards and in a lobbying firm,” the video’s narrator says. “Evan Bayh, he’s made Washington work for Evan Bayh.”

The ad features a montage of black-and-white shots of Bayh juxtaposed against images of Wall Street, a Bentley and a corporate board room.

“He’s been called ‘Wall Street’s dream senator,’ ” the narrator notes, citing a piece published by The New Republican in August.

“Bayh carved out a lucrative niche, swaying public policy to benefit the clients at his big Washington lobbying firm,” the narrator continues.

It’s the fourth ad in an $8.5 million fall advertising campaign the Senate Leadership Fund is waging in Indiana.

Republican-allied outside groups have spent $5 million since Aug. 30 to support Young, according to a GOP source who tracks media buys.

The Senate Majority PAC, a Democratic super PAC, has spent $1.4 million to help Bayh.

Bayh leads Young by about 5 points, according to a RealClearPolitics average of polls.

The Indiana race could be crucial to Democrats’ chances of reclaiming the Senate. The party needs to flip five seats — or four if it also keeps the White House — to win control of the upper chamber.

Tags Dan Coats Mitch McConnell Todd Young