The Washington Post‘s Greg Sargent posted that the SEIU is spending $1.5 million on ads in six high-unemployment swing states (Colorado, Florida, Missouri, Montana, Nevada and Virginia) to shift the conversation away from austerity and toward jobs.
The campaign, an SEIU official tells me, is meant to counteract ads being run by high profile conservative groups that are pushing an austerity agenda among voters who are struggling economically — and will pressure House Republicans to prioritize job creation over tax breaks for corporations and the rich.
[snip]
“Tomorrow we’re launching an expensive campaign to push the issue of jobs back to where it belongs — in the forefront of the public discourse in Congress,” SEIU political director Brandon Davis tells me. “We’ve seen a large investment from Crossroads and other groups trying to frame the debate in key areas where folks are really struggling and looking for answers.”
Davis acknowledged that Democrats in Congress, too, had been complicit in steering the conversation away from jobs and towards deficit reduction, but said Republicans should bear the brunt of the blame. He said Republicans should be the focal point of the campaign because they control the House and the Republican austerity vision is dominant in Congress right now.
Here’s the ad:
While many voters will see through the SEIU’s attack ads, there are those still gullible enough to believe it.
