The rift in the Republican party is turning into an air war.
Usually, video attacks are reserved for election opponents or members of the opposite party but as members of Congress returned home for their August recess, members of the GOP appear to be gleefully violating the late President Ronald Reagan's "11th commandment" -- the one that said you shoul never speak ill of a fellow Republican. What we've spotted so far:
Freedomworks is going after John Cornyn, the No. 2 Republican leader in the Senate leadership. The Tea Party-affiliated think tank is accusing the Texas Republican of betraying ...
Continue readingPolitical ad watch: Now starring Steve King
Rep. Steve King has a starring role in a Democratic ad blitz that seeks to hang the Iowa Republican's latest controversial remarks about immigrants around the necks of Republicans trying to appeal to constituencies with heavily Hispanic votes.
The political powerhouse labor union SEIU has just released a Spanish-language ad that targets seven Republican House members, challenging them to say whether they agree with comments that "insult our families" or support legislation that would provide millions of immigrants now living illegally in the United States with a pathway to citizenship. Sunlight spotted the new campaign on Ad Hawk, our ...
Continue readingCrossroads GPS pushes Congress to pass immigration overhaul in web video
Crossroads GPS, the nonprofit co-founded by Karl Rove that backs GOP candidates, has released an online video to push Congress to pass immigration reform as the Senate moves closer to a final vote on the overhaul.
Continue readingIn Massachusetts, Gomez touts credentials as political independent — with help from the GOP
The National Republican Senatorial Committee released a web video Tuesday backing the party's Senate candidate Gabriel Gomez, a political novice who is facing longtime Rep. Ed Markey, D-Mass., in a special election three weeks from today.
Even though Gomez, a former Navy Seal-turned private equity investor, has tried to distance himself from the national party, the ad disclaimer suggests it is a coordinated communication between the national party and the candidate. The disclaimer says it was was paid for by the NRSC and authorized by the Gomez committee.
The definition of a coordinated ad is one that is "made ...
Continue readingNRSC tries to paint GOP as Party of Yes in new fundraising video
Criticized as the party of "no" by Democrats and even members of their own party, GOP Senate Republicans are trying to convince donors in a video posted online Thursday that theirs is in fact the party of "yes."
Continue readingGroup opposed to immigration bill advertising in 18 states
As the Senate prepares to take up sweeping and controversial immigration reform legislation next month, NumbersUSA is hitting the airwaves to oppose the legislation in 18 states.
Continue readingMayors Against Illegal Guns runs ad backing Nevada background checks
The latest TV ad by Mayors Against Illegal Guns, the gun control group funded by Mayor Mike Bloomberg, hit the airwaves in Nevada this week, ahead of a close vote Wednesday on a background check bill that passed the state Senate.
The bill would close the loophole that allows private sales to be made without checking the criminal background of the purchaser. It also bans people deemed mentally ill and likely to harm someone from possessing a gun. The bill can be followed on Scout, Sunlight's tool for tracking the progress of state and federal legislation.
The bill passed ...
Continue readingPlease Vote for Sunlight’s “Civic Hacking in Pursuit of Democracy” Video
Here’s an appeal for our readers: please help Sunlight spread the news of the great work civic hackers do as far and wide as possible by voting for our storytelling video in the Looking@Democracy contest organized by the Illinois Humanities Council with support from the MacArthur Foundation. (Voting ends May 16.) We couldn’t wait to tell this (previously) untold story through a short video to demonstrate how the nascent movement of civic hackers are creating apps and tools using open government data to make their communities better. These men and women are equipped with laptops, open data and creative ideas to positively reconstruct the way we relate with government.
Continue readingMayors Against Illegal Guns hits the airwaves in N.H and Pa.
Mayors Against Illegal Guns, the pro-gun control group backed by New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, is not giving up the fight.
Three weeks after the Senate rejected legislation offered in the wake of the December shooting massacre that left 26 people dead at a Connecticut elementary school, the group is launching what appears to be a high-priced ad campaign to keep the pressure on lawmakers.
The ad seen above attacks Sen. Kelly Ayotte, a New Hampshire Republican who was the lone lawmaker from the Northeast to vote against the gun control measure; another advertisement praises Sen. Pat Toomey, a ...
Continue readingStart your engines: GOP makes first 2014 ad buys against Democratic House members
(Updated: 2:25 p.m.)
The National Republican Congressional Committee is making its first ad buy of the 2014 season with a blitz against seven vulnerable House Democrats.
Sunlight's Ad Hawk, which allows mobile phone users identify the sources of political advertising, picked up new spots aimed at the incumbents overnight. The early ads underscore the already-intensifying battle for the House, which President Barack Obama has vowed to put back in Democratic control. The president is travelling to the West Coast today for a series of fundraisers benefiting the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. Read the details on Political Party ...
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