Where's Rick?, Asks Hillary Ad

Skipped Is Running Upstate

(CBS)  The CBS News Political Unit is tracking the latest campaign commercials. Francesca Gessner analyzes "Skipped," Hillary Clinton's latest TV commercial.

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The Ad:
N.Y. Democratic Senate candidate Hillary Clinton has released a new TV ad attacking her Republican opponent, Rep. Rick Lazio, for missing 59 out 60 recent votes in Congress. The 15-second ad, titled Skipped, highlights votes Lazio missed on funding for new teachers, domestic violence and home heating oil but points out that he did manage “to vote himself a pay raise.” The ad is running in upstate New York.

Audio:
Announcer: Recently Rick Lazio skipped 59 of 60 votes in Congress.... votes on adding 100,000 new teachers...... on domestic violence...... on home heating oil... But Lazio did manage to show up weeks ago...to vote himself a pay raise. Rick Lazio...the more you know, the more you wonder.

Visual:
The quick, 15-second ad lists Lazio’s missed votes in white type against a black background.

Fact check:
Regarding the pay increase, the bill Lazio voted for was part of a larger Treasury bill that raised salaries for a range of federal employees, including members of Congress. In addition, Lazio’s campaign says that most of the votes referred to in Skipped were either ceremonial votes or votes for which Lazio’s attendance would not have made a difference. Lazio’s camp also points out that up until Labor Day, Lazio had a nearly perfect voting record.

The Strategy:
In an ironic turn of events, Hillary Clinton is taking a page out of former New York Republican Senator Alfonse D’Amato’s playbook. In the hotly contested 1998 New York Senate race, D'Amato attacked his Democratic foe, then-Congressman Chuck Schumer, for skipping House votes to campaign in New York. With Skipped, Clinton follows suit, seeking to portray Lazio as putting his political ambitions before the needs of New York. In this way, the ad is in line with a recent theme in Clinton’s speeches and ads alleging that Lazio is “out of touch” with New York’s concerns. Moreover, given that Clinton has never held elected office, the ad provides a relatively safe line of attack given that Lazio cannot turn the same accusation against her. Skipped is Clinton’s second new ad in as many days that is only airing upstate, reflecting the increasing importance of this region as the race heads into its final weeks.