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NJ-SEN: New Ad: Big Things Are Indeed At Stake -- So Vote Dem
Dem Senator Robert Menendez has a new ad up which is definitely worth a look, because it does something we haven't seen in a Dem ad this cycle: It takes a key Republican attack line -- the idea that big things like our safety and freedom are "at stake" in this election -- and turns it on the GOP. The ad, aptly called "Big," unabashedly proclaims that big things are indeed "at stake," which is exactly why you should vote Democratic. Dems have been known to be overly timid about drawing contrasts with the GOP in big, bold terms, and we think this ad -- which may reflect confidence born of Menendez's growing lead in polls -- is pretty effective. View it here.
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I'm a Southerner, so I have a visceral "ooh, that won't play" to pro-choice ads, but overall this one seems pretty solid. I'm Saragon, and I approve of this message.
October 23, 2006 3:58 PM | Reply | Permalink
Ever been to Jersey? Even Republicans are prochoice
in NJ.
October 23, 2006 5:56 PM | Reply | Permalink
This is a good ad for me, because I don't particularly like Menendez. As my senator, he voted in favor of the flag-burning amendment. I disagreed with his reasoning on that one. It struck me as too divergent from my own feelings on the relative importance of flag-burning vs. messing with the constitution.
Then he voted for the pro-torture act, trashing magna carta and habeus corpus. I almost can't get over that one.
Almost. I don't trust Tom Kean, either.
If I didn't think it could tip the senate, I would abstain from this contest. As it is, I'm voting for him, even if he's not liberal enough for me. It's my support for a Democratic Senate rather than Menendez that's doing it, though.
I hope Menendez gets elected, and then knocked off in a primary challenge in 2012. It won't happen, but hey, I can hope.
October 23, 2006 6:28 PM | Reply | Permalink
MCroft has a good point. This a great, great ad in terms of getting Democrats who might not like Menendez compared to some other, better candidate to vote for him anyway. Menendez vs. himself is a big loser, but Menendez vs. Bush-crony is a big, big winner.
October 23, 2006 8:29 PM | Reply | Permalink
NJN News played part of this ad this evening, and I agree that it pre-empts a Republican strategy and attaches it to Kean Jr. This ad and Menendez's ad that links Kean Jr. with Bush's failed policies in Iraq are highly effective in visual presentation, voiceover, and aesthetics. Menendez has been able to turn the tables effectively on Kean Jr. in this campaign partly through such well-chosen ads.
October 23, 2006 11:22 PM | Reply | Permalink