A group backed by House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., is taking aim at Danny O’Connor, the Democrat running in Ohio’s 12th Congressional District, for his support for House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., ahead of Tuesday’s special election contest.
In a new ad, the Congressional Leadership Fund
bashed O’Connor, who is running to replace former Rep. Pat Tiberi, for his willingness to support
Pelosi to lead the Democratic caucus. The ad, titled “O’Connor and Pelosi,” also accuses O’Connor of pushing for an $800 billion cut to Medicare spending through his support for the Affordable Care Act.
“First Danny O’Connor lied about his support for Nancy Pelosi, and now he’s lying about Social Security and Medicare.The only thing O’Connor has proven to Ohioans throughout this campaign is that he’ll do or say anything to get elected,” said Courtney Alexander, a
fund
spokeswoman, in a statement.
“Ohioans deserve a leader like Troy Balderson who they can trust to put their interests first, not Nancy Pelosi’s.”
T
he ad is part of
more than
$2.6 million the group has spent in support of Balderson
, the Republican candidate to replace Tiberi,
also a Republican, who exited Congress in mid-January for a job atop the Ohio Business Roundtable. The 30-second spot will run on cable and broadcast television.
O’Connor’s willingness to back Pelosi came out in a recent interview with MSNBC’s Chris Matthews. After saying he would not support her, O’Connor said that if she was the member Democrats put forward, he would back her.
“I would support whoever the Democratic Party puts forward,” O’Connor said.
The race has become a top contest ahead of the 2018 midterm elections and one Republicans have made a priority in recent days, with Republicans of all stripes supporting Balderson ahead of election day. President Trump is slated to hold a rally to support Balderson on Saturday in an effort to retain the seat, while Gov. John Kasich cut an ad for the Republican candidate.
Along with the spending from CLF, the National Republican Congressional Committee
has poured in $1.5 million to keep the seat in Republican hands.
House Republicans currently hold a 23-seat advantage over Democrats heading into the Tuesday special election.
