GOP race for Tiberi seat gets messy
WASHINGTON — Less than a week before voters pick nominees for the open congressional seat vacated by Rep. Pat Tiberi, the already messy race looks only to get muddier, with outside groups taking swings at targets in the GOP field and candidates working to defend themselves.
In all, GOP campaigns and outside groups have spent well over $2 million flooding the radio and TV airwaves in central Ohio. Democrats have yet to go on the air.
At least four more ads went on the air in the past few days.
The latest came Friday, when state Sen. Troy Balderson launched an ad defending himself against the conservative Club for Growth’s claim that he voted to implement Obamacare in Ohio.
In fact, the state Senate never took a direct vote on Gov. John Kasich’s Medicaid expansion, which was allowed by Obama’s Affordable Care Act. The club argues that by backing a comprehensive 2015 state budget that included the Medicaid expansion, Balderson implicitly backed the healthcare law despised by many Republicans. Balderson has taken such umbrage that his campaign sent out cease-and-desist letters to all TV stations airing the ads, but the spots have mostly continued.
So Balderson’s campaign is countering with a commercial batting down the Club for Growth’s accusation. In the 30-second ad, the Zanesville Republican points out that the Club for Growth was considered a “Never Trump” group during the 2016 election. The organization endorsed Sen. Ted Cruz in the 2016 GOP primary.
“Melanie Leneghan and her ‘Never Trump’ dark money friends are attacking me and lying about my record,” Balderson said in the ad. He said he fought attempts to implement Obamacare as well as “the Obama-Pelosi assault on our values.”
“I’ll fight alongside Trump for his agenda,” he said. “That’s why the ‘Never Trumpers’ who tried to keep him out of office are attacking me now.”
At the same time, Defending Main Street, a group that purports to represent the “governing” wing of the GOP, this week launched a $110,000 buy calling Balderson a “hard-charging businessman” who “will fight shoulderto-shoulder with President Trump to drain the swamp.” That group, linked to the Republican Main Street Partnership, is a pro-business organization that claimed Tiberi as one of its members.
Balderson’s allies are taking on Leneghan as well.
A third ad, launched by a darkmoney group called Americans United for Values, bought $221,000 in air time to criticize the Liberty Township trustee. The 30-second spot, which features images of Leneghan, says dark money groups have spent “hundreds of thousands of dollars” to elect “fake conservative Melanie Leneghan” and accuses Leneghan of voting for a taxpayer-funded pay raise as a township trustee and of “authorizing the pavement of her own street with taxpayer dollars.”
“Pay raises and perks for politicians, bankrolled by the Washington swamp,” the ad’s announcer intones.
Brian DeRoy, communications director for Leneghan’s campaign, said, “This Washington, D.C. funded swamp group is using the classic Jedi mind trick of distraction, but instead of saying ‘These aren’t the droids you’re looking for,’ Troy Balderson is distracting you from his consistent support of Obamacare. Voters will see right through the DC Swamp Creatures and the lies they put out about Melanie Leneghan.”
Matt DeTemple, executive director of the Ohio Township Association, also weighed in on the questionable claims in the ad: “Township trustees do not and could not vote themselves a raise. Township trustees salaries are set by statute, Revised Code section 505.24. Any statement that Melanie Leneghan or any other township official voted themselves a raise is obviously false.”
While Balderson and Leneghan and their allies have dominated the airwaves, supporters of Kevin Bacon have also launched an ad supporting the Westerville state senator.
The ad features bacon — the breakfast meat — sizzling as well as images of Bacon, the legislator. The message: Bacon’s “conservative record really sizzles.”
The ad was purchased by a dark money group called the Coalition for Growth and Opportunity. The group has not filed with the Federal Election Commission, meaning its sources of funding are unknown.