Kavanaugh foes flood Facebook with ads
Democrats’ spending far outpaces GOP response
WASHINGTON – A flood of advertising paid for by left-leaning groups opposed to Justice Brett Kavanaugh’s confirmation appeared on Facebook in the hours after the Senate voted to put him on the Supreme Court – a blitz that was mostly unmatched by Republicans, a USA TODAY analysis shows.
In the two days after the Kavanaugh vote, Democratic candidates and groups that lobbied heavily against President Donald Trump’s nominee outspent Republicans by as much as five to one, and their messages appeared on as many as 4.4 million screens.
The lopsided showing on one of the most popular platforms for digital political advertising comes as both parties seek to use Kavanaugh’s confirmation to energize their voters before next month’s midterm election. The lighter presence for Republican groups may underscore the challenge the GOP will face with weeks to go before voters decide control of Congress.
“People are so mad,” said Liz Jaff, president of Be a Hero PAC, a group launched this year that spent nearly $80,000 on Facebook after the confirmation vote this past weekend. “They’re not going to forget.”
Of roughly 800 Facebook ad placements reviewed by USA TODAY, more than 650 were funded by groups opposed to Kavanaugh. Those ads, many of which were identical but targeted at different demographic groups, embraced words such as “furious,” “outraged” and “disgusted” to describe the Senate’s vote to confirm Kavanaugh, despite allegations by Christine Blasey Ford that he sexually assaulted her decades ago. Kavanaugh vehemently denied the allegations.
“Republicans voted to confirm Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court, even though he is clearly unfit,” read one ad from the liberal group MoveOn.org that crossed as many as 500,000 screens. “This is just the latest example of why we must vote out Donald Trump’s cronies on Election Day.”
After the confirmation, pro-abortion rights group NARAL Pro-Choice America launched a $1 million television and digital ad campaign focused on vulnerable House Republicans running in suburban races. In the hours after the vote, NARAL placed a Facebook ad that has been viewed tens of thousands of times and cost less than $500.
“It’s incredibly painful to think of the suffering that we know Brett Kavanaugh and his appointment will bring about for millions of Americans,” the ad read. “But we will not forget this pain – not tomorrow, not next week, and not in November.”
About 150 ad placements supporting Kavanaugh relied on less charged rhetoric. Some congratulated Kavanaugh and Trump on the outcome. Only a handful directly blamed Democrats for the process, echoing Trump who said he believes Ford’s allegations were part of a Democratic effort to smear Kavanaugh.
A group called Stand with Susan Collins ran two Facebook ads praising the Maine Republican for her “principled stand against the intimidation.”
Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., became one of the most outspoken supporters of Kavanaugh, launching an impassioned defense of Trump’s nominee after Ford’s testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee last month. Graham’s political campaign ran two ads minutes after the vote closed on the Senate floor.
“Let Senator Graham know you appreciate his support of Justice Kavanaugh,” read one of Graham’s ads. “Send Senator Graham a message today!”
The ad directed users to enter their name and email address on Graham’s website.
A spokesman for Graham’s campaign declined to comment.
Some Republican groups may be treading carefully, fearful of alienating women and independents in tight House races in suburban districts, analysts said. “The risk of inflaming voters that just don’t like Kavanaugh is greater than the reward of keeping enthusiasm high for the base,” said Republican strategist John Thomas with Thomas Partners Strategies.
James Dickey, chairman of the Texas Republican Party, said Republicans and independent voters are just as fired up as Democrats over the confirmation. The state party ran a pair of ads in the days after the vote that reached as many as 10,000 screens in the state.
“We ran the ads to get a feel for just how fired up voters were and to give people an outlet for expressing their appreciation for Justice Kavanaugh’s appointment,” Dickey said in a statement. “What we learned was that we’ll be see- ing a lot of these very motivated Republicans on election day.”
This year, Facebook launched stricter ad disclosures for political candidates and for ads focused on polarizing issues such as race and immigration in an effort to prevent Russian operatives and other foreign actors from meddling in U.S. elections.
Political advertisers have to verify their identity and location. A “paid for by” label is slapped on any Facebook and Instagram ads that are political or touch on issues of national importance.
Facebook users may view an online archive, where they can see approximately how much the ad cost – within a range – how widely it was seen and who the ad reached. Facebook gave USA TODAY and a small number of organizations early access to sift through the archive’s data.
Using the top range of impressions for both pro- and anti-Kavanaugh forces, the left-leaning groups reached as many as 4.4 million screens compared with 1.3 million for the pro-Kavanaugh groups, according to the analysis. Most of the anti-Kavanaugh ads were placed not by candidates but outside groups.
Facebook has become a go-to platform for political campaigns because of its ability to target messaging at specific types of voters. Democrats can use it to pinpoint suburban women who may have been put off by Kavanaugh’s confirmation. Republicans can go after evangelicals keen to put conservatives on the Supreme Court.
“Facebook is really good at translating emotional responses into action,” said Justin Schall, a Democratic consultant involved in several midterm races. “It’s incredibly powerful, particularly when done timely.”
Democratic political strategist Alex Kellner said the Kavanaugh confirmation is driving donations and volunteers on the left, firing up base voters at just the right time. Democrats, he said, hope to tie the GOP to Kavanaugh to make gains with college-educated women and independent voters.
“The Kavanaugh confirmation has proven to be a very good message to rile up the Democratic base,” said Kellner, senior director at Bully Pulpit Interactive. “In a midterm election, where turnout is vital, that can be a game changer.”
Republicans, including Trump, countered that the episode will energize their voters as well, either out of appreciation for the president or anger over what some viewed as a politically motivated, last-minute attack. GOP consultants acknowledged their party faces a big challenge: Celebrating too much could turn off independents.
“You don’t want to hand ammunition to your opponents,” Thomas said.
A CNN poll conducted over a period before and after the vote found that roughly half of Americans opposed Kavanaugh, compared with 41 percent who supported him.
“Facebook is really good at translating emotional responses into action.” Justin Schall, Democratic consultant