Now that Vice President Kamala Harris is the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, a new ad from Pennsylvania GOP U.S. Senate candidate Dave McCormick offers a template for how GOP candidates can use her candidacy to their benefit in competitive races.
And so far it’s a big hit with Republicans nationwide.
“Wow!” said former George W. Bush speechwriter Marc Thiessen.
It made an impression on the other side of the aisle, too. “Team Kamala is going to need an effective response to attacks like this one, and in a hurry,” posted liberal pundit and former Rolling Stone editor-in-chief Noah Shachtman.
The 90-second video begins with incumbent Sen. Bob Casey Jr. (D-Pa.) calling Harris “inspiring and capable.”
It follows up with video clips in which she endorsed the Green New Deal, declared her support for a ban on fracking and offshore drilling, and called for an end to all private health insurance.
The ad even features her support for changing the food pyramid in order to reduce red meat consumption.
It ends with Casey complimenting Harris, saying people will be “impressed by her ability” once they get to know her.
It’s an effective ad, Pennsylvania GOP strategist Chris Nicholas told DVJournal. “It’s a very adept attempt to make Casey have to explain all those crazy views.”
And, Republicans say, the ad is even more effective because it accurately reflects Harris’ history as a progressive politician.
The independent website Govtrack.us ranked Harris as the “most politically left” of freshmen senators from 2017 to 2019. For the 2019 to 2021 term, she was second on Govtrack’s “most politically left” list, narrowly edged out by Socialist Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.).
“Her views are more outside the mainstream of American political thought, so let her stand up at her next political rally and say why she believes those things,” said Nicholas.
McCormick’s campaign put more pressure on Casey this week with a memo tying him to Harris’s “toxic brand” of San Francisco liberal policies on taxes, energy, and crime. It also criticized Harris for failing to carry out her duties as Senate president when Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke to a joint meeting of Congress Wednesday.
Republicans have also pushed back on Casey’s claim that he’s an independent voice for Pennsylvania, citing data from FiveThirtyEight showing he voted with President Joe Biden 98.5 percent of the time.
That puts Casey in a tough position. Does he defend Harris’ past comments and risk alienating more centrist voters? Or does he repudiate Harris and risk the ire of the state party’s more progressive base?
Casey has supported Harris thus far, just as he continued to support Biden for another four-year term until the day the president announced his withdrawal from the race. As McCormick continues to tie him to Harris’ more problematic positions, will Casey stick with her?
And it appears Casey won’t be the only Democrat facing this dilemma.
Ohio Republican Bernie Moreno, who hopes to unseat longtime Democrat incumbent Sen. Sherrod Brown, has released a similar ad.
And more ads are likely on the way, according to the National Republican Senatorial Committee, the group that works to elect Republicans to the U.S. Senate. A spokesperson told DVJournal every Senate Democrat who endorses Harris is endorsing her agenda. The group promised “to make sure voters know that.”
According to RealClearPolitics, Trump is leading Harris by four percent in Pennsylvania and 1.7 percent nationwide. The idea of keeping vulnerable Democratic incumbents tied to Harris has Republicans salivating, especially in races where polls show Democrats leading by single digits, like the Casey-McCormick and the Brown-Moreno races.
“Harris was saying all this while she was running for president. It’s pertinent information because, guess what, she’s running for president again,” said Nicholas.
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