For weeks, Republicans in North Carolina, led by Senate candidate Thom Tillis, have attacked Sen. Kay Hagan for missing a meeting of the Armed Services Committee where the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria was discussed.
On Tuesday, after the second Senate debate, Hagan gave Republicans a gift, confirming that “there was one” hearing she missed specifically to attend a political fundraiser — consistent with reports that have appeared in the press.
“It was scheduled early in the day, and then that hearing had to be postponed later that day,” Hagan explained to reporters, when asked directly whether she missed any hearings for fundraisers. “So yes, I did miss that one.”
Hagan’s statement, delivered with cameras rolling, was her first acknowledgement of having missed the meeting.
It’s likely that Republicans will use that footage to take this line of attack to the television airwaves, which makes it much more politically potent.
Tillis has already latched on to Hagan’s attendance record at committee hearings, especially those related to the threat of ISIS, and the topic played prominently in the debate Tuesday.
“I wonder how much more information I would have if my senator would show up for work?” Tillis said.
