ABOUT:
Defense policy analysis, commentary and discussion.
The National Republican Congressional Committee is already going after Rep. Jim Matheson.
The campaign arm of the House GOP is going up with a 30-second television spot targeting the Utah Democrat, one of the few remaining members of the Blue Dog Coalition, for supporting the $787 billion stimulus bill two years ago.
The strategy is in line with a similar round of attacks that the NRCC launched last week against vulnerable Democrats across the nation to mark the two-year anniversary of the stimulus bill. Last November, Matheson eked out a victory to capture his sixth term in Utah’s 2nd district, winning by just 4 points.
“Two years ago, [President Barack] Obama and [then-Speaker Nancy] Pelosi used their Washington monopoly to pass the stimulus,” says the narrator in the new ad, obtained by Roll Call for an early look.
“And Utah’s piece? Taxpayers got billions of wasteful spending," the narrator says. "It was supposed to create jobs ... but it created more debt. And Jim Matheson voted for it.”
The new ad comes a week after the leader of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee publicly vowed to go on offense in the quest to reclaim the House majority in 2012. If the early action is any indication, it looks like the NRCC will be playing plenty of offense as well.
Watch:
Want Roll Call on your doorstep?
SIGN UPAlready a subscriber?
Sign up to have the print PDF emailed to you.
Roll Call has launched a new feature, Hill Navigator, to advise congressional staffers and would-be staffers on how to manage workplace issues on Capitol Hill. Please send us your questions — anything from office etiquette, to handling awkward moments, to what happens when the work life gets too personal. Submissions will be treated anonymously.
