McCaskill airing first TV ads of re-election bid

David A. Lieb, Associated Press

Friday, February 24, 2012

Missouri U.S. Sen. Claire McCaskill is casting herself as a combatant against special interests in the first TV ads of her re-election campaign.

The Democratic senator said she was beginning to air advertisements Thursday in response to critical commercials against her by the Republican Party, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and a conservative political action group.

McCaskill’s campaign said groups have spent $3.8 million on ads against her, but McCaskill did not disclose how much she was spending on ads.

The TV advertisement by McCaskill opens with black-and-white images of some of the ads against her, many of which have linked her to President Barack Obama’s policies, such as the new federal health care law. Her ad accuses “special interests” opposing her of wanting to end Medicare and expand tax breaks for multi-millionaires and oil companies, and of supporting unfair trade deals with China. It declares that McCaskill fights to protect Medicare, cut taxes for the middle class and make products in Missouri.

McCaskill is seeking her second, six-year term in the Senate. At least three Republicans are competing to challenge her — U.S. Rep. Todd Akin, of suburban St. Louis, former state Treasurer Sarah Steelman of Rolla, and St. Louis businessman John Brunner. The day after announcing his candidacy last October, Brunner began airing TV ads — financed with his own money — showing images of McCaskill with Obama and denouncing Washington’s spending and debt.

Missouri’s Senate race has gotten off to an earlier advertising start than when McCaskill ran six years ago, perhaps because neither party had a competitive primary last time. In 2006, Republican Sen. Jim Talent was the first to air TV ads, and those did not begin until July 20. McCaskill defeated Talent by a margin of fewer than 50,000 votes out of more than 2.1 million cast.

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spelchek 1 year, 2 months ago

No amount of money will save her political hide come this November. Her refusal to listen to Missourian's concerns about Obamacare at town hall meetings sealed her fate. She can brag about her pork spending record all she wants, but that doesn't change the fact her name is on the largest entitlement of our time, passed by one party, in the middle of the night, after a few senators were bribed for their vote. Transparency indeed. You can fool some people sometimes, but you can't fool all the people all the time.

JCLifer 1 year, 2 months ago

I so hope you are right. I just keep remembering how dumb voters can be, and how a few sound bites the week before the election makes them forget the past.

This lady has got to go. She does not represent the thoughts and views of most Missourians, that is for sure.

lovemykids 1 year, 2 months ago

I have to agree. She has a pretty bad record when it comes to ignoring the very voters who got her the job. I hope people are smart enough to vote her out.

wyriontair 1 year, 2 months ago

She always claims she's a combantant of "special interest groups", and what about the "special interest groups" she uses to push her agenda? She has a horrible record and she and her staff are rude, call constituents names, do not believe Missourians are capable of making decisions for themselves and basically believe "we the people" are ignorant of the issues or we are just "misinformed". I hope voters actually look at her record and her treatment of the constituents and vote against her.

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