Koch group launches ad campaign against NC GOP lawmaker

A conservative group backed by Charles and David Koch is launching an advertising campaign aimed at defeating Rep. Renee Ellmers (R-N.C.) in her district’s Republican primary.

{mosads}This will be the first time that Americans for Prosperity has taken on a Republican lawmaker.

“Renee Ellmers ran on a conservative, limited-government platform, but went to Washington and quickly became part of the problem,” Americans for Prosperity President Tim Phillips said in a statement.

“Rep. Ellmers has had every chance to match her votes to her prior conservative rhetoric, but instead ignores the voices and concerns of voters who have been let down. North Carolinians deserve a representative in Washington who will fight for them, not vote for corporate welfare and wasteful spending.”

In the statement, the group criticized Ellmers over her support for the 2013 Murray-Ryan budget deal, the Export-Import Bank reauthorization and the 2014 farm bill.

The group’s first ad, which was released on Thursday, attacks Ellmers for those positions and praises her opponent, Rep. George Holding (R-N.C.). Holding currently represents another North Carolina district but decided to challenge Ellmers after a court-ordered redistricting in the state.