Sen. Claire McCaskill (AP Photo via DayLife)
— The conservative group Crossroads GPS has now spent more than $1 million against Democratic U.S. Sen. Claire McCaskill.
The outside advocacy group, launched in part by former Bush aide Karl Rove in the 2010 election cycle, has spent more than $1,118,800 against McCaskill on billboards, radio commercials and TV ads so far this year, according to numbers published by the group.
The latest ad, entitled “14,” focuses on the rising national debt. Others have focused on the economy, and another focused on McCaskill’s plane taxes flub.
While the ads are designed fire up opposition to McCaskill, McCaskill has tried to use the attacks as material to encourage supporters to contribute to her campaign.
“Rove and the anonymous billionaires funding his attacks have a lot of money — and they’ll use every cent to distort the truth,” McCaskill wrote in September, in a fundraising email entitled “Rove is Back.”
Catilin Legacki, spokeswoman for the Missouri Democratic Party, said the ads prove McCaskill has “stepped on the toes” of special interests in Washington.
“All of the attacks against Claire are going to be about distorting her record,” said Legacki. “[W]hy won’t this group say who is paying for these ads? Missourians shouldn’t believe what’s in them unless they know who is behind them.”
The McCaskill ad is part of a broader push by Crossroads, targeting competitive states across the nation. Thursday’s announcement included $1.2 million in new advertisements in Massachusetts, Missouri, Montana, and Nebraska.
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