Republicans released an ad Friday blasting Nebraska State Sen. Brad Ashford, a Democrat, for supporting a law that allowed convicted felon Nikko Jenkins to serve only half of his prison sentence for an armed robbery and assault conviction.
After being released early, Jenkins went on to murder four people in Omaha, Neb., between Aug. 11-21, 2013. He was later caught, arrested and convicted on April 16, 2014, of four counts of first-degree murder.
“Nikko Jenkins was released from prison early after serving only half his sentence,” states the ad, which was produced and released by the National Republican Congressional Committee.
The ad then references Nebraska’s so-called “good time” law, a measure that ensures the reduction of prison sentences based on how much time inmates have served.
Ashford, who is running in a tight congressional race against Republican incumbent Rep. Lee Terry, R-Neb., supports the “good time” law.
“Brad Ashford supported the ‘good time’ law and still defends it, allowing criminals like Nikko Jenkins to be released early,” the ad claims.
Nebraska’s state government had a huge controversy this summer over mistaken calculations of prison sentences that caused many inmates to be released before they were even eligible for parole. Jenkins’ crime occurred around the same time, and this month state officials began talking about reconsidering the good time law, which was proposed and signed by the state’s Republican governor, Dave Heineman.
The ad is risky for Republicans. That is, it will either serve its purpose, annihilating voter confidence in Ashford ahead of the Nov. 4 elections, or it will be attacked for “going nuclear” with supposed racial undertones. Note how much the ad shows Jenkins, an African-American.
When Republicans in 1988 ran their infamous “Willie Horton” ad against Democratic presidential nominee Michael Dukakis, they weathered similar accusations of playing with subtle racism.
As governor of Massachusetts, Dukakis oversaw a prison furlough program that allowed for convicted felon Willie Horton to go free for a weekend, wherein he evaded authorities and raped a local woman after beating, binding and gagging her fiancé.
Dukakis supported the weekend furlough program that allowed Horton to go free, but it was apparently off limits for then-President George H. W. Bush’s team to go after this obviously flawed program.
“Brad Ashford’s dangerous record on crime is fair game. Nebraska voters deserve to know that Brad Ashford supports policies that have made them less safe,” NRCC spokesman Tyler Houlton told the Washington Examiner in a statement.
“Brad Ashford’s support for Nebraska’s Good Time Law is highlighted in the NRCC’s latest television ad in Nebraska’s 2nd Congressional District. The law, which has been widely criticized for letting criminals out early, allowed violent criminal Nikko Jenkins out of prison after only serving half of his sentence. He went on to murder four people in 11 days,” he added.
Ashford’s camp last week pushed back on the GOP’s “baseless and desperate attacks,” calling it the product of a “flailing campaign,” wisely anticipating that Terry would make this a campaign issue.
The ultra-liberal Salon.com has already put down the marker, calling the NRCC’s new “Nikko” ad “the worst race-baiting campaign ad since Willie Horton.”
