A Republican super PAC launched its first attack ad against West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin (D) on Wednesday, targeting the vulnerable Democrat for his votes against ObamaCare repeal and the GOP tax-cut bill.
The ad uses January remarks that Vice President Pence made in West Virginia against Manchin, who is running for reelection in a state President Trump won in a landslide in 2016.
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“People of the Mountain State, you deserve to know. When it came to cutting your taxes, Joe voted ‘no,'” Pence says in the ad.
“Joe voted ‘no’ to giving working families more of your hard-earned money. Joe voted ‘no’ on tax cuts for job creators, and on the child tax credit, giving you your first $24,000 of your income tax-free, Joe voted ‘no.’ “
“Now that might make Chuck Schumer [D-N.Y.] and Nancy Pelosi [D-Calif.] pretty happy,” he said, referring to the Senate and House minority leaders. “But West Virginia needs to let him know you expect better.”
At the time, Manchin, a former governor of West Virginia first elected to the Senate in 2010, called Pence’s remarks an example of why “Washington sucks.”
“The vice president’s comments are exactly why Washington sucks. I’m disappointed in his comments but will continue to work to make Washington work so West Virginia and our country work,” Manchin said in a statement in January.
The Senate Leadership Fund will run its ad in several West Virginia TV markets including the state’s capital, Charleston, for 10 days, according to Politico’s Playbook.