Democratic North Carolina Sen. Kay Hagan missed half the full Armed Services Committee meetings last year, the same time period that American leaders were being warned that the Islamic State (ISIS) was growing in power and influence, according to a new ad by Hagan’s Republican challenger, Thom Tillis,
Politico reports.
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"In January, President Obama refers to the Islamic State as a JV team," a narrator says as a timeline flashes on the screen. "Days later, the Armed Services Committee holds a hearing on new global threats. Senator Kay Hagan [was] absent."
Throughout the spot, ISIS members are shown riding in a pickup truck, waving their flag.
"While ISIS grew, Obama kept waiting, and Kay Hagan kept quiet," the narrator continues. "The price for their failure is danger. To change direction, we have to change our senator."
Hagan’s camp fired back, accusing Tillis of "spineless fence-sitting" and countering that Hagan chaired three subcommittee hearings on counter-terrorism that focused on al-Qaida in Iraq and Syria.
"Speaker Tillis is desperate to distract from the fact that while he has no position on how to eliminate ISIS … Kay has been decisive and clear about what action must be taken to destroy these terrorists," said Hagan’s communications director Sadie Weiner.
Tillis’ spot is the hardest hitting of the election cycle when it comes to the subject of ISIS, according to Politico, which notes that Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, a Kentucky Republican, cited "instability overseas" as a reason why his challenger, Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes, wasn’t ready for the job.
In a more subdued spot, New Hampshire’s GOP Senate candidate, Scott Brown, politely slams the incumbent, Democrat Jeanne Shaheen.
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"Anyone who turns on the TV these days know we faces challenges to our way of life. Radical Islamic terrorists are threatening to cause the collapse of our country," Brown says while speaking to the camera. "President Obama and Senator Shaheen seem confused about the nature of the threat – not me. I want to secure the border; keep out the people who would do us harm and restore America’s leadership in the world. I’m Scott Brown and I approve this message. Because protecting the homeland is the first step in making America strong again."
Both the Hagan and Tillis campaigns are using their opponent’s ads to ask donors for more contributions in this tight race, the
Fayetteville (N.C.) Observer reports.
"North Carolina has become a political ad playground," says a donation request from Hagan sent last week. "We're up to $27million from outside groups trying to defeat Kay and boost Thom Tillis.
Tillis is following suit.
"Political forecasters continue to rate both this race, and the entire Senate Majority, a tossup," reads a fundraising email. "The question everyone seems to be asking is, 'Can we raise enough money to compete with Kay Hagan?' With your help, I know we can."
Speaking to reporters in Charlotte last week, Tillis accused Hagan of inaction along with her party’s elite, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and the president,
according to the Charlotte Observer.
"Much of what we’re dealing with right now is the president, Kay Hagan and (Senate Majority Leader) Harry Reid trying to find a solution to a problem that they largely created through their inaction and appeasement over the last five years, six years," he said.