Senate

Martha McSally fundraises off ‘liberal hack’ remark to CNN reporter

by John Bowden - 01/16/20 2:42 PM ET

A fundraising email for Sen. Martha McSally (R-Ariz.) capitalized on her exchange with a CNN reporter in the halls of the Senate on Thursday, urging her supporters to fight back against “liberal hacks.”

The message was sent after McSally was caught on-camera calling CNN’s Manu Raju a “liberal hack” and declining to comment on the upcoming Senate impeachment trial following the delivery of articles of impeachment by the House this week.

“I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: I’m not in the Senate to play politics, especially with liberal hacks who profit off of spin,” McSally wrote in the email.

“I’m in the Senate to fight for all Arizonans, not play games with the left-wing media,” she added.

So, @MarthaMcSally‘s “liberal hack” crack against @mkraju was basically just a set-up for raising campaign money. pic.twitter.com/qaR4KNun1Y

— Dave Levinthal (@davelevinthal) January 16, 2020

She later announced her campaign was selling a shirt with “liberal hack” on it as well.

NEW SHIRT!!

I’m in the Senate to fight for all Arizonans, not play politics and games with the liberal hacks of the left-wing media! https://t.co/tNbKJa49JN

— McSally For Senate (@MarthaMcSally) January 17, 2020

President Trump’s campaign also touted McSally’s response to the reporter in a tweet linking to a fundraising page for the senator, tweeting that “THIS is how you handle FAKE NEWS @CNN.”

THREE CHEERS for Senator @MarthaMcSally!!!

THIS is how you handle FAKE NEWS @CNN.

DONATE to Martha NOW ➡️ https://t.co/6SuZq3HR7r pic.twitter.com/K9YAsxvYwb

— Trump War Room — Text FIGHT to 88022 (@TrumpWarRoom) January 16, 2020

Trump in particular is known for his attacks on CNN’s credibility, and for sparring with CNN’s White House correspondent, Jim Acosta.

McSally’s 2020 opponent, former astronaut Mark Kelly, had not commented on McSally’s remarks early Thursday afternoon but some Democrats used the incident to urge voters to support him.

“Unhappy with her response? Support @ShuttleCDRKelly!” tweeted Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.), who added a link to Kelly’s campaign website.

Unhappy with her response? Support @ShuttleCDRKelly! https://t.co/UJcMPf5JT3 https://t.co/AypBFoinUE

— Eric Swalwell (@ericswalwell) January 16, 2020

McSally appeared to stand by her remark to Raju in a tweet, retweeting the reporter’s account of the encounter with the comment “you are” and adding her own staffer’s video of the exchange.

A) you are.
B) here’s the video. https://t.co/zVgk9pBhdf pic.twitter.com/cfFdotLjFK

— Martha McSally (@SenMcSallyAZ) January 16, 2020

McSally was appointed to the Senate in late 2018 to serve the remainder of the term started by late Sen. John McCain (R). She previously lost a race for the Senate seat currently held by Arizona’s other senator, Kyrsten Sinema (D).

Updated Friday, Jan. 17 at 5:43 p.m.