“Senate Republicans are rolling out a provocative new strategy as they try to boost the GOP’s chances in Arizona next year: propping up incumbent Sen. Kyrsten Sinema.” That’s Politico’s take on the NRSC’s new ad in the Arizona Senate race – which attacks Ruben Gallego in “intensely personal terms” while playing up Kyrsten Sinema’s liberal bona fides.
Replace Sinema PAC has been warning for over a year the danger for Democrats that third-place Sinema could siphon enough votes from Gallego to hand the Senate seat to Kari Lake. It’s clear that NRSC is trying to orchestrate exactly that.
“The NRSC views this race the same as we do: Kyrsten Sinema is a spoiler. That’s why they’re spending money to make her sound more appealing to Democrats and less appealing to Republicans. But we know the truth: Kyrsten Sinema is a corrupt politician who caters to her wealthy donors and uses campaign money to subsidize her luxury lifestyle, while putting Arizonans last. We also know that Arizona can’t afford a MAGA extremist like Kari Lake. Ruben Gallego is the only sensible option for Democrats, independents, and moderates.” – Replace Sinema PAC
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Politico: GOP moves to split Arizona Democrats in 3-way Senate race
Rachel Bade | November 20, 2023
NRSC operatives have been fretting about polls that have shown Sinema, an independent, pulling in nearly twice as many Republican voters as Democrats in a three-way race. So in a bid to keep GOP voters behind the GOP nominee while splitting the Democratic vote, they’re launching a new digital ad Monday boosting Sinema’s liberal bona fides while hammering Rep. Ruben Gallego, the likely Democratic nominee.
The new ad, titled “A Choice,” paints Sinema as being firmly behind President Joe Biden and his legislative agenda, voting with the president “100%” of the time and backing his climate initiatives in the Inflation Reduction Act. Not mentioned are the multitude of headaches and setbacks she dealt to Biden as she successfully worked to trim the IRA’s ambitions and preserve the Senate filibuster.
Conversely, the ad slams Gallego — whom the NRSC has nicknamed “Rotten Ruben” — in intensely personal terms. […]
One strategist, speaking anonymously to candidly discuss party strategy, said the GOP’s mission is straightforward: Make any three-way race into a Republican-vs.-two-Democrats battle rather than Democrat-vs.-two-Republicans one.
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