In Michigan, Democrats took aim at the Republican nominee for governor almost immediately after the primary with a television ad highlighting her opposition to abortion, without exceptions for rape or incest.
In Georgia, Democrats recently attacked the Republican governor in another television ad, with women speaking fearfully about the specter of being investigated and “criminalized.”
And in Arizona, the Republican nominees for both Senate and governor were confronted almost instantly after their primaries with different ads calling them “dangerous” for their anti-abortion positions.
All across America, Democrats are using abortion as a powerful cudgel in their 2022 television campaigns, paying for an onslaught of ads in House, Senate and governor’s races that show how swiftly abortion politics have shifted since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in late June….
In the roughly 50 days since the Supreme Court’s ruling, Democrats have flooded the airwaves in many of the nation’s most closely watched contests, spending nearly eight times as much as Republicans have on ads talking about abortion — $31.9 million compared with $4.2 million, according to data from AdImpact, a media tracking firm. And in the closest Senate and governor’s contests, Republicans have spent virtually nothing countering the Democratic offensive.
By contrast, in the last midterms four years ago, Democrats spent less than $1 million on ads that mentioned abortion-related issues in the same time period.
They have spent more than $2 million on ads targeting Senator Ron Johnson, Republican of Wisconsin, for his position on abortion; $1.6 million on ads against Mehmet Oz, the Republican candidate for Senate in Pennsylvania; and $1.8 million on Adam Laxalt, the Republican Senate nominee in Nevada who recently wrote an op-ed defending his stance on the issue.
More abortion ads have aired in the Senate races in North Carolina, New Hampshire, Arizona and Washington — and even in Connecticut and Maryland, two states with secure Democratic incumbents….
For now, new abortion-focused Democratic advertisements are popping up seemingly almost every day, including in Alaska, Iowa and Virginia.
Some abortion ads use the specific words and positions of Republican candidates against them. Some are narrated by women speaking in deeply raw and personal terms. Some use Republicans’ unyielding stances on abortion to cast them more broadly as extremists.
And some, like one early ad hitting Doug Mastriano, the Republican nominee for governor in Pennsylvania, do all three. “Doug Mastriano scares me,” a woman declares at the beginning of the spot.
One particularly emotional spot came from Stacey Abrams, the Democratic nominee for governor of Georgia, who used a montage of women to target Gov. Brian Kemp’s stance on abortion.
“He supports a total ban,” one woman says in the ad. “Even if I’m raped,” another says. More women continue, one after another: “A victim of incest. Forced pregnancy. Criminalized women. Women with jail time….”
Often, abortion is the Democrats’ opening gambit at the start of general election ad campaigns. Just this month, ads have targeted Tudor Dixon in the governor’s race in Michigan and Kari Lake in the governor’s race in Arizona. And a day after Minnesota’s primary for governor, Democrats began airing an ad calling Scott Jensen, the Republican nominee, “too extreme” on abortion.
The next major test of abortion’s political power comes in a special election on Aug. 23 in New York.
County Executive Pat Ryan in Ulster County, N.Y., the Democratic candidate in that race, has made abortion the focus of his campaign, even in a state where access remains protected. In a new ad this week, Mr. Ryan featured a carousel of national Republicans arguing that the party would pursue a nationwide ban.
A Democratic super PAC is spending $500,000 to promote Mr. Ryan, a veteran, with an abortion message. “He sure didn’t fight for our freedom abroad to see it taken away from women here at home,” the narrator says.
The election is being closely monitored as a barometer of the issue’s power. Democrats have overperformed — even in defeat — in two other special elections since Roe v. Wade was overturned, in Minnesota and Nebraska….
In Arizona, ads are hammering Blake Masters, the Republican Senate candidate, for calling abortion “demonic,” talking about punishing doctors who perform the procedure and opposing exceptions for rape and incest during the primary. In a post-primary interview with The Arizona Republic, Mr. Masters called the state’s 15-week ban “a reasonable solution” and expressed his desire to “reflect the will of Arizonans.”
On the airwaves, though, few Republicans have had an answer. One notable exception has come in the New Mexico governor’s race; Mark Ronchetti, the Republican nominee to take on Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, has been under fire over his stance on abortion.
“I’m personally pro-life, but I believe we can all come together on a policy that reflects our shared values,” Mr. Ronchetti said in a campaign spot that detailed his position on the issue.
Josh Shapiro, the Pennsylvania attorney general and Democratic nominee for governor, opened his first ad of the general election by hitting Mr. Mastriano on abortion.
In an interview, Mr. Shapiro said voters were especially attuned to the issue because the state’s Republican-led Legislature had passed strict abortion limits that he would veto and that Mr. Mastriano would sign….
The above comes from an August 14 story on dnyuz.com.
It’s pretty undeniable that Dobbs has created a serious political problem for Republicans and an opportunity for Democrats. You might say the Supreme Court rigged the elections.
YFC the staunch defender of the baby killing status quo, his ilk has destroyed the culture, YFC did you cry and scream the day Roe was shot to Hell?
??? None of that is true and no I didn’t cry and scream.
A dog owned by a gay couple got monkeypox. Want to explain how that happened? Sexual contact?
What has monkeypox or gay anything or dogs have to do with this post. Obsessed much?
From one perspective, yes. It moves the ground where the debate is held, from federal courts to state legislatures and governors. From another perspective, nominally Catholic pro-abortion politicians (mostly but not exclusively Democrats) can no longer hide behind the “I’m personally opposed, but have to respect the law” dodge. Now they will have to go on the record, discuss abortion on the merits, take a position, and face the consequences. Those consequences may or may not be electoral. They may also be canonical, if their bishops are courageous (with the heart of a lion, one might say). No public official can claim to be obligated any longer to defend a supposed constitutional ‘right’ to abortion. So if one favors such a ‘right’, one places oneself in opposition to immemorial Church teaching on basic human dignity. Bishops need to take this as a teaching opportunity, just as several did when disciplining Southern politicians in the last century who promoted segregation and undeniably racist and unjust laws.
Right… and that’s the problem…human lives reduced to gamesmanship…no one has to ask which side is willing to take a hit for the truth and which panders to hedonism….give me a ‘serious political problem’ any day if it means not offending Truth Himself.
More proof that Catholics cannot be Democrats
In San Jose, Cindy Chavez is making abortion “rights” central to her campaign for mayor. No mayor can change abortion policy. But, one can try to scare voters. She does an exceptional job of hiding anything about her early life. Let’s hope she is not another abortion-promoting Catholic. Her opponent, Matt Mahan, is another Democrat who is also pro-abortion. Just not as pro-abortion as Ms. Chavez. The company of which he was CEO was neutral on abortion. (“I ran a technology company that sought to bring people together to discuss and debate issues openly, to form their own opinions. To then organize with like-minded people around the policies and candidates they support,” Mahan said. “I think it would have been incredibly inappropriate and undermining of our democracy for us, as a communications platform, to censor views we don’t agree with.”) Mr. Mahan attended Bellarmine College Prep in San Jose, a Jesuit, formerly Catholic, high school. Let’s hope he too is not another abortion-promoting Catholic.
Sadly, the Party of Death is an accurate description of my former political party.
Pretty undeniable that a demonic wrong has been put right. Now, if individual citizens of a state want the blood of murdered humans on their hands, they must directly say, “let their blood be on us and on our children”. And they will, I’m sure through their individual state legislators.
Off the subject: The first question on the citizenship test is “What is the supreme law of the land?”
No one I have asked knew the answer.
Of course, I live in the South so most people think it’s the Bible.
This, to me, explains a lot of why we have such issues in our country.
possibly better question:
“Who is the Supreme Lawgiver?”
The One Who said: In Romans 13
1
Let every person be subordinate to the higher authorities, for there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been established by God.
2
Therefore, whoever resists authority opposes what God has appointed, and those who oppose it will bring judgment upon themselves.
3
For rulers are not a cause of fear to good conduct, but to evil. Do you wish to have no fear of authority? Then do what is good and you will receive approval from it,
4
for it is a servant of God for your good. But if you do evil, be afraid, for it does not bear the sword without purpose; it is the servant of God to inflict wrath on the evildoer.
5
Therefore, it is necessary to be subject not only because of the wrath but also because of conscience.
6
This is why you also pay taxes, for the authorities are ministers of God, devoting themselves to this very thing.
7
Pay to all their dues, taxes to whom taxes are due, toll to whom toll is due, respect to whom respect is due, honor to whom honor is due.
Ollie, in what context are you asking that question? What’s your answer?
Ask Dr. Zaius
Evil is as evil does.
Dog?
or God?
no matter how you spell it,
He’s still man’s best friend.
This is America – YOU get to pick.
is that a good thing???
I pick the second amendment. Don’t tread on me.
don’t tread, excuse your microaggressions. Go back to Florida where that crazed right-wing extremist governor lets you put “Don’t tread on me” on license plates. Even the Southern Poverty Law Center says it’s “really awful”(though they can’t explain why, it just is). Here in enlightened California, we’ll soon have prochoice license plates. We may even get one to remind us we’re victimes, the “Tread on me” license plate. What’s the second amendment anyway? Next, you’ll be claiming men can’t get pregnant. Just check your privilege, whatever kind of privilege it is.
In Arizona,anti-abortion Blake Masters and Kair Lake are called “dangerous” in the Left’s ads that use fear to motivate the non-thinkers. Fear is a great motivator. To understand how well it works, consider all the brain-dead morons still walking around with a mask on.