Hot Ads: Santorum and Romney battle on the Michigan airwaves
(At left, Robert Hendin and Jill Jackson discuss the ads.)
We start this week with the Republican Presidential campaign. As the frontrunners Mitt Romney and Rick Santorum battle it out ahead of the Michigan primary, both candidates are hitting the airwaves with positive and negative ads.
The following pages have these ads and much more.
Hot Ads: Santorum and Romney battle on the Michigan airwaves
"Rombo"
It's always tricky to make negative campaigns ads the focus of a negative campaign ad, but this new Rick Santorum ad delivers the message with oomph. With an upbeat patriotic march playing in the background, the ad features a well coifed Romney look-a-like with a gun shooting mud pellets at a cardboard Santorum throughout an old building as if it was a vintage gangster film.
"Mitt Romney's negative attack machine is back, this time on full throttle. This time Romney is firing his mud at Rick Santorum," says the announcer as mud is splattered across the walls behind the cutout of the former Pennsylvania senator.
"Romney and his Super Pac have spent a staggering twenty million grossly attacking fellow Republicans. Why? Romney's trying to hide from his big government Romneycare and his support for job killing cap-and-trade," says the announcer. At the end of the ad the mud-gun jams and splashes mud on the Romney shooter's pressed white dress shirt who grimaces in frustration as the announcer simply says, "In the end, Mitt Romney's ugly attacks are going to backfire."
This may be the most creative ad yet of the Republican campaign for president. Instead of being overly dark with upsetting images and suspenseful music, the ad is light, with the subtle patriotism of a march playing behind the action and fun imagery of a man shooting mud at a cardboard cutout, none of it hitting by the way, at least in the ad.
Santorum's able to hit with a smile - the lightheartedness of the ad will attract attention of viewers -- but it also delivers a wallop of a punch. It hits Romney for his own barrage of negative ads, which most Americans don't like, and takes jabs at Romney's record on health care reform in Massachusetts and his past support for cap-and-trade energy legislation.
It's a mudslinging ad about mudslinging and it's definitely earned its place atop hot ads of the week.
Hot Ads: Santorum and Romney battle on the Michigan airwaves
"Growing Up"
Romney's ad is positive - highlighting his Michigan roots. He grew up there while his father was governor from 1963 to1969. The ad features candidate Romney speaking to the camera while driving a Chrysler. "Now when I grew up in Michigan it was exciting to be here. Remember going to the Detroit Auto Show with my dad. That was a big deal," he says over images of himself as a boy with his father and video of classic cars.
"President Obama did all these things that liberals have wanted to do for years. The fact that you've got millions of Americans out of work, home values collapsing, people here in Detroit are distressed. I want to make Michigan stronger and better. Michigan has been my home and this is personal," he says while continuing to drive. And yes, he is wearing a seat belt.
Romney is trying to accomplish a few goals here. He's touting his Michigan roots and trying to hit the president for the auto bailout while, at the same time, championing the auto industry, which President Obama helped restructure with large government loans. Romney called for the structured bankruptcy for the auto industry, but did not favor any federal bailout. The ad ends with black and white photos of a young Romney in the driver's seat of a car and as a young adult with his wife Ann.
Hot Ads: Santorum and Romney battle on the Michigan airwaves
"Dick Lugar for Jobs"
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has gone on the air in 16 states with 21 different ads hitting Democrats and complementing Republicans on issues such as health care reform and the Keystone XL pipeline. The Chamber is running the ads, deemed voter education ads, in 12 congressional races supporting Republican incumbents, and eight Senate races, including in Indiana for Republican Senator Dick Lugar, and against three Democrats running for re-election in Ohio, Missouri and Montana, as well two other Democrats running for Senate in Virginia and Wisconsin.
The ads are educational because they bring up an issue, and instead of saying vote for or against someone, they simply encourage viewers to call that member of congress and tell them they are - or aren't - doing a good job on a particular issue.
"We're asking the public to hold members of Congress accountable for their positions on Obamacare, job-killing regulations, energy security, and a culture of wasteful spending in Washington," said U.S. Chamber President and CEO Tom Donohue in announcing the ads.
They ads don't ask for a vote, but do bring up issues on which to judge candidates, and these types of ads are quite common from groups like the Chamber of Commerce as well as third party groups Club for Growth and American Crossroads.
How a viewer should judge the candidate can all be inferred from the tone of the ad, some giving glowing support to Republicans on some issues and painting dark ominous portraits of Democrats in others.
The ad in support of energy jobs and Republican Dick Lugar is positive in tone, with happy images of smiling workers and of Lugar himself.
It hits on the Keystone pipeline issue. "When President Obama blocked its construction, Dick Lugar stood up and opposed him. Lugar fights for energy jobs and America's energy security, even when a President gets in his way," says the announcer. "Call Dick Lugar and tell him to keep fighting to bring energy jobs to Indiana."
"Obamacare will kill jobs" says the announcer over darkly toned music in an ad against Democrat Senator Claire McCaskill running for re-election in Missouri. "So why did Claire McCaskill cast the deciding vote for Obamacare in Washington DC?....Call Claire McCaskill and tell her Missouri doesn't need government run health care. Support the repeal, we need jobs."
The ad, clearly negative, hits repeatedly on the Republican terms for the president's health care plan "Obamacare" and throws in a dig about McCaskill's senate tenure.
Hot Ads: Santorum and Romney battle on the Michigan airwaves
NARAL Contraception Ad
It's not often we pick radio ads, but NARAL Pro-Choice America hit on one of the most controversial decisions the Obama administration has made this year- the move to require religious affiliated employers hospitals offer employees insurance plans that cover contraception. The president has since offered an accommodation that would put the onus on the insurance companies rather than religious institutions, but Catholic Bishops are still against the administration's policy and Republicans in Congress are poised to act on the issue soon.
NARAL is spending $250,000 to air this advertisement in four battleground states. In the ad, a woman named Jane goes to the pharmacist to pick up her birth control. When Jane asks how much she owes, the pharmacists tells her "No charge. This is covered without a co-pay now." Next, a narrator says "thanks to President Obama, the 99 percent of American women who use birth control could now hear this same message. You see, we scored an important victory when the president stood up for our health care, and guaranteed insurance coverage of birth control at no cost. He's making sure women of all faiths, no matter where they work, can get contraceptive coverage."
The narrator then asks listeners to call members of Congress to "tell them to stand with President Obama and not between a woman and her birth control."
Rep. Fred Upton (R-MI) is currently working on a bill that would reverse the president's decision ensuring that employees at religious-affiliated institutions get free contraceptives. And just yesterday, Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV) announced that he will allow a vote on an amendment by Sen. Roy Blunt (R-MO) that would allow any employer to deny free contraceptives if it violates their "beliefs or moral convictions."
Hot Ads: Santorum and Romney battle on the Michigan airwaves
"'His Own Words' Montana"
Last week, we brought you the story of Sen. Scott Brown (R-MA) and his challenger Elizabeth Warren breaking a deal to stop third-party organizations from airing ads against each other. The unprecedented move was radical. Who ever heard of a politician turning down free negative advertising that enabled them to keep their noses clean?
The deal inspired Sen. Jon Tester (D-MT) who is in a very competitive race to keep his seat against Montana's only congressman, Rep. Danny Rehberg (R-MT). The sitting Senator has been hit with numerous third party ads in the state like this "Hot Ad" from Crossroads GPS. Tester reached out to Rehberg last week with a letter and asked if he would also consider a ban where the candidates would pay a penalty in the amount of the ad buy if a third party group continues the attacks.
Rep. Rehberg upped the ante. He responded by saying if Sen. Tester is so against outside money, then they should also ban all donations from outside the state if Montana to eliminate all outside influence. An offer that Tester refused according to the Associated Press for being too difficult to enforce.
The failed attempt at rising above the money now seems to be at an end. Something Rep. Danny Rehberg told us last night is a good thing. "Let's get back on the issues" Rehberg said.
Hot Ads: Santorum and Romney battle on the Michigan airwaves
"American Dream"
And finally, it's not too often that you hear a candidate in modern American politics touting their progressive credentials.
Beginning the ad with quintessential images of Americana -- flags, trains, homes, jobs -- Ilya Sheyman, a candidate for the Democratic primary in Illinois' 10th Congressional district, says his version of the American Dream included his Jewish refugee parents coming to the country looking for opportunity. For others, he says, the American dream is job security, a home or a secure retirement.
"But now the American dream is under attack," he says speaking to the camera. Over images of him talking, accompanied by a series of logos of unions and groups who've endorsed him, he touts his work for progressive causes. "That's why I organized five million Americans for real health care reform and worked to improve our public schools," he says.
If elected, he says facing the camera, "I'll fight to protect Social Security and pass a jobs bill. I'm Ilya Sheyman, and I approve this message because we need a proven progressive in Congress to fight back"
Sheyman, a community organizer who worked for then Senator Barack Obama and MoveOn.org (and touts their endorsement in the ad), is running as a true liberal in a district that voted for Bill Clinton, Al Gore, John Kerry and President Obama, but went to a Republican in the 2010 Congressional elections. He's hitting on the common-Republican theme that the American Dream is under attack, but unlike Republicans, doesn't blame Democrats or the President for it. He simply leaves the attacker unnamed, but hints that Republicans, primarily those in Congress, are the culprit.
On the next page, review all of the ads with Robert Hendin and Jill Jackson and vote for your favorite.
Hot Ads: Santorum and Romney battle on the Michigan airwaves
Above, CBS News Robert Hendin and Jill Jackson break down all the "Hot Ads." Vote for your favorite below:
Last Week: Buzzworthy ads from the campaign so far