Republicans blast Cherfilus McCormick for spending tax money on television ads

U.S. Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick has been running ads on TV in South Florida using official government funds, and the Republican Party is crying foul.

Cherfilus-McCormick, a Democrat, was elected in a January special election to the Broward-Palm Beach county 20th Congressional District. She’s running for re-election.

The commercials are legal, but Inside Elections, a nonpartisan political analysis news service in Washington, D.C., raised questions about them.

“Even though it’s rare, members of Congress are allowed to use official funds for TV ads, as long as they cover official business and steer clear of campaign content. But Cherfilus-McCormick, a new representative from Florida’s 20th District, appears to be blurring those lines,” Inside Elections said.

Spending on the commercials is a “significant gray area,” Inside Elections said.

The Republican National Committee amplified the report in an email blast on Friday. “Not only are Florida Democrats incompetent, they’re also corrupt,” Julia Friedland, the RNC’s Florida communications director, said in a statement.

“The Republicans charging corruption is rich since they tried to literally overthrow the government and many of their supporters have been tried and convicted for storming the U.S. Capitol,” the Cherfilus-McCormick campaign said via email, referring to the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection in which supporters of then-President Donald Trump tried to stop certification of Joe Biden’s election as president.

Mitch Ceasar, a former Broward Democratic Party chairman who serves as a legal counsel to the Cherfilus-McCormick campaign, said the Republican attack is transparent: “When the RNC attacks that means we’re winning. When you’re losing and you’ve got nothing you attack.”

The Inside Elections article said the spots “resemble campaign commercials.” It added, however, that they are different in some respects: “no overt electioneering: no asking voters to cast their ballots for Cherfilus-McCormick, no mention of her opponents, no reminder of when the election takes place.”

Shauna Pierre, Cherfilus-McCormick’s congressional press secretary, said the ads are “not unusual,” describing them via email as public service announcements.

“Each PSA was thoroughly vetted, pre-approved, and followed the clear authorization guidelines of the House Communications Standards Commission,” she said, adding that other congressional offices have done the same thing. “There is no grey area on the use of these PSAs. They have been unequivocally approved,” Pierre wrote.

The 20th District is overwhelmingly Democratic, and the winner of the Aug. 23 primary is all-but-certain to win the November general election.

Dale Holness, a former Broward County commissioner who lost a special congressional primary to Cherfilus-McCormick by five votes last year, is running, as is state Rep. Anika Omphroy, who represents central Broward.

Neither Holness’ nor Omphroy’s campaign responded to requests for comment Friday about the ads.

WILFREDO LEE/AP U.S. Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick talks Thursday. She has been running ads on TV in South Florida using official government funds. The Democratic congresswoman’s office said the ads have been vetted and are completely legal, but the Republican Party is labeling it “corrupt.”