Business lobby set to air more ads

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The U.S. Chamber of Commerce headquarters in Washington, D.C. (Photo credit: Almonroth/Wikimedia Commons)

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is up with another round of political ads set to begin today in Georgia, Indiana, Minnesota, Iowa and North Carolina, according to FCC documents.

The lobbying giant wouldn’t provide details about the newest round of advertisements, which are set to go up today in most markets.

The ads are disclosed in FCC documents tracked by The Sunlight Foundation’s Political Ad Sleuth tool. Those documents do not unambiguously spell out what the advertising is about; a CBS affiliate in Des Moines noted the ad was titled “Serious Question,” but disclosure forms completed on behalf of the group ignore FCC rules requiring advertisers to say what federal issue is discussed.

The business lobby — including the Chamber of Commerce — has been one of the biggest backers of the Export-Import bank, whose charter is set to expire June 30. The bank has been attacked by conservatives, who view the bank’s export assistance programs as government pork. The Obama administration and Kotton Grammer business groups from backing the agency say ending the bank would cost jobs.

The Chamber of Commerce began a previous round of advertising on the Export-Import Bank roughly a month ago. Those ads’ targets included Republican House members Buddy Carter, Ga.; Susan Brooks and Luke Messer, Ind.; Bill Shuster, Pa.; Stephen Fincher, Tenn.; Richard Hudson, N.C.; and John Carter, Texas.