The Stimulus Ads
This morning I noted the increasing number of advertisements flying back-and-forth over the stimulus package. Here’s what we know about them so far: DCCC The DCCC were the first out of the gates with their “Putting Families First” campaign, which ran from Feb. 3 to Feb. 10. No word yet on who produced these ads, which claim Republicans have failed families by not voting for the stimulus package—and point out the various things they have funded instead. The ads ran in 28 districts, and the campaign also includes targeted e-mails to 3 million voters and 100,000 live phone calls. Check out a sample radio ad, or head over to the DCCC site to read the scripts of other ads in the campaign. This week, the campaign continues with automated phone calls in seven districts, all home to freshmen representatives. Here’s the script:
Hello, I’m calling on behalf of the DCCC with an important message about the economy. Did you know Congressman Tom Rooney voted against economic recovery that would immediately create and save nearly 330,000 Florida jobs? Times are tough, tell Congressman Rooney to put families before politics.
The DSCC is not yet running any ads on the issue, but New Jersey Sen. Robert Menendez, who leads the committee, called its first major press conference today in response to the fact that the stimulus has emerged as the cycle’s first major campaign issue. NRCC Tomorrow, the NRCC will hit back with radio spots of their own. The ads are being produced by OnMessage, a Republican firm based out of Alexandria that has previously produced ads for Bobby Jindal and for the RNC, among others. Below is a sample of an ad and a list of districts where the ads will run: Dina Titus – NV-3 Charlie Melancon – LA-3 Mary Jo Kilroy – OH-15 Steve Driehaus – OH-1 Tim Walz – MN-1 Dennis Moore – KS-3 Harry Teague – NM-2 Chris Carney – PA-10 John Hall – NY-19 Suzanne Kosmas – FL-24 Alan Grayson – FL-8 Glenn Nye – VA-2 Mark Schauer – MI-7 Larry Kissell – NC-8 Travis Childers – MS-1 Kurt Schrader – OR-5 Zach Space – OH-18 Betsy Markey – CO-4 Chet Edwards – TX-17 Kathy Dahlkemper – PA Dan Maffei – NY-25 Bart Gordon – TN-06 Steve Kagan – WI-08 John Barrow – GA-12 Jerry McNerney – CA-11 Ike Skelton – MO-04 Eric Massa – NY-29 John Salazar – CO-03 Carol Shea-Porter – NH-01 Bruce Braley – IA-01 MoveOn Now outside groups are jumping in as well. MoveOn.org Political Action is running the following ad that hits Texas Sen. John Cornyn for missing the vote on the stimulus bill, during which he was speaking to a group Republican donors in Manhattan. The call urges listeners to call Cornyn, and on the website asks supporters to donate money to help get the ad on air. The ad was produced by Murphy Putnam, who produced the Scott Murphy ad that began running yesterday in the NY-20 race and a number of other prominent Democratic spots. The ad will begin airing in major Texas markets, including Dallas and Austin, tomorrow.
AFSCME/America United For Change The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, one the country’s largest unions, and Americans United For Change, an organization originally formed in 2005 to fight Bush’s attempts to privatize social security, launched a brief TV and radio ad campaign yesterday under the auspices of the Campaign for Jobs and Economic Recovery. The radio spots target 18 congressmen in both houses, and asks listeners to call their congressmen and urge them to vote for the compromise stimulus package. Here’s a sample targeting Ohio Sen. George Voinovich:
The TV spots, meanwhile, are airing today only on national and D.C. cable stations:
The ads by Politics TV, who call themselves the first political consulting firm centered on web video.