House Majority PAC is launching ads defending Arizona Democratic Reps. Ann Kirkpatrick and Ron Barber against attacks on ObamaCare from a prominent Republican group.
The TV ads from the super-PAC working to regain a Democratic majority in the House will run in Tucson, Ariz., and Phoenix for a week and are backed by about $200,000.
{mosads}The ads are meant to counter a $650,000 advertising blitz from Americans for Prosperity, a Koch brothers-backed outside group that has spent upwards of $20 million since August hammering Democrats for their support of — and occasionally thanking Republicans for their opposition to — ObamaCare.
House Majority PAC is launching a positive spot for Kirkpatrick that emphasizes her Arizona ties and her work to fix the law.
“It’s here, in small towns and wide-open places, that Ann Kirkpatrick listens and learns. It’s why she blew the whistle on the disastrous healthcare website, calling it ‘stunning ineptitude,’ and worked to fix it,” the narrator says in the ad.
He closes by characterizing her as “seeing what’s wrong, doing what’s right.”
In Barber’s district, the PAC is launching an ad attacking his likely Republican opponent, retired Air Force colonel and 2012 nominee Martha McSally, as a proponent of the “reckless agenda” pushed by the Kochs.
“Seen these ads attacking Congressman Ron Barber? They’re paid for by out-of-state billionaires who are pushing a reckless agenda that eliminates the minimum wage and privatizes Social Security. That’s why they’re supporting Martha McSally,” the narrator says, a reference to Rep. Paul Ryan’s (R-Wis.) budget proposal, which Democrats have used to tie Republican candidates to unpopular policies.
“Martha McSally: She’s really not for you,” the narrator closes.
Barber and Kirkpatrick are top Republican targets heading into November and have already faced a barrage of on-air attacks from GOP groups focused on the healthcare law.