Graves Unleashes Early Attack Ads

It’s only June, but a full-fledged ad war is going on in Missouri, where Rep. Sam Graves (R-Mo.) is locked in a competitive race against former Kansas City mayor Kay Barnes (D).

It all started when Graves’ campaign made a small media buy in what has become one of the more memorable ads of this election cycle. The ad accused Barnes of celebrating the “San Francisco-style values” of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi because she attended a fundraiser hosted by Pelosi in San Francisco.

“Yes to same-sex marriage. Yes to abortion on demand. Yes to amnesty for illegal immigrants,” the narrator says in the ad.

The ad famously features three multi-ethnic dancers (one of whom has a bizarre hairdo) to illustrate its not-too-subtle point that Barnes is culturally out of step with the district. .

Barnes responded with an ad of her own, calling Graves’ attack ad “shameful” – and accusing him of having a “pathetic record” and having run a “pathetic campaign.” Her ad aired footage of the three exotic dancers in Graves’ ad, with the narrator saying: "So maybe this is really all Sam Graves has left."

Well, it’s apparently not all Graves has up his sleeve. His campaign recently followed up with another ad that hammers on the same themes, accusing Barnes of having an agenda “to make same sex marriage the law in Missouri.”

And now Barnes is up with her second response ad, again referencing his “sleazy” ads and labeling the four-term Congressman as “Exxon’s congressman.”
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