National Dems answer doubters in DC with new ad in Maryland One
It has become conventional wisdom in Washington that the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee is poised to bail on Frank Kratovil's uphill re-election fight in Maryland and direct its money to more winnable contests elsewhere.
The DCCC defies that prediction, at least for now, with a new ad attacking Kratovil's Republican foe Andy Harris. The 30-second spot attempts to portray the veteran state lawmaker from Baltimore County as out of touch with the lives of voters in the district, which spans the Chesapeake Bay and takes in Western Shore portions of Baltimore, Anne Arundel and Harford counties, plus the entire Eastern Shore.
The new commercial, click here to view it, reinforces recent Kratovil ads that go after Harris for his support of the "fair tax," a consumption tax plan that is a favorite of some conservatives. The DCCC pioneered that line of attack in other races before Kratovil picked it up; as we noted here before, the ads have been criticized by nonpartisan watchdogs as misleading, because they don't inform voters that the sales tax would replace the existing federal tax system.
According to the DCCC, the ad is running in both the Baltimore and Salisbury media markets. It is the first broadcast ad in the race by the committee, which is chaired by Rep. Chris Van Hollen of Maryland.
Comments
Didn't the DCCC say they were not going to support races that were lost causes?
Posted by: From Harford | September 29, 2010 10:43 AM
Who said DCCC was bailing on Kratovil??? There has only been 1 poll months ago that showed Harris and Kratovil polling in the 30s. Kratovil still has a 3-2 fundraising edge which is a good clue this is a very competitive race. Remember, Kratovil won in 2008 with a monstrous fundraising disadvantage that he had erased and then some for 2010. The DCCC only said they were pulling the plug on candidates that weren't pulling their own weight. Kratovil has pulled his weight and then some.
Posted by: Josh | September 29, 2010 1:10 PM
As the Sun reports itself, the new Kratovil attack ad largely recycles ads that have been discredited by nonpartisan watchdog groups.
Two questions for Sun reporters:
1) How big a media buy did the DCCC make with this commercial? In other words, how committed are they to the race, or did they make a small buy for appearances sake? After all, this seat will be lost in Chris Van Hollen's backyard.
2) Did you bother to fact-check the source cited in the ad: The Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy? A couple of keyclicks takes you to the organizations funding page: http://www.itepnet.org/about/funding.php. A virtual who's who of the liberal left foundation circuit: Ford Foundation, Open Society Institute (George Soros), Rockefeller Foundation, etc. The motto of the Insgtitute is "Informing the Debate Over Tax Policy Nationwide". Seems like "Misinforming" is the real mission.
A little more diligence from the Fourth Estate, please.
Posted by: Chestertownie | September 29, 2010 1:14 PM
A longshot, sure. But not a lost cause. People from the Shore while more conservative, tend to want thier rep from the Shore as well. There are concerns that a guy from Baltimore County, just won't get thier issues. (see harris's vote to ban hunting on Sundays_
Posted by: Tony | September 29, 2010 1:33 PM
Tony,
Andy Harris understands the concerns of all First District voters. Your red-herring on Sunday voting notwithstanding, the NRA's Political Victory Fund has given Andy an "A" rating (see http://sbynews.blogspot.com/2010/09/andy-harris-receives-rating-from-nra.html). He's a friend of Maryland hunters.
Posted by: Chestertownie | September 29, 2010 2:45 PM
The latest ad (not the earlier one) I saw from Kratovil quotes directly from the Harris web site so to term it misleading is disingenuous. Kratovil has done exactly what he said he would do as representative--he votes as a conservative Democrat and as such is one of the members of congress least likely to vote with his party, thus showing he is not a puppet of Pelosi. Who voted for Kratovil in 08 who will switch to Harris? Why? I think the race is indeed tight. Kratovil has well represented the conservative First district..
Posted by: SchoolMarm | September 29, 2010 3:52 PM
"he votes as a conservative Democrat"! If voting with Nancy Pelosi 85% of the time qualifies one as a "conservative Democrat", you have to ask: "What has become of the party of Scoop Jackson and Sam Nunn?"
Posted by: Chestertownie | September 30, 2010 7:24 AM