Some House Democrats are so excited to "run on Obamacare," they're retiring from office. Others are so amped up to defend their super-popular law that their partisan allies are airing TV ads designed to distance them from the ongoing trainwreck. As Dan noted earlier, here's a spot that the liberal group House Majority PAC is running in Arizona in defense of Rep. Ann Kirkpatrick -- who voted for Obamacare in 2010:
See? Kirkpatrick has spoken out against the horrific execution of a shoddy law that was sold on lies, which she nevertheless saluted and supported four years ago, against the will of the people. What a hero. She's also talking tough about sticking it to the insurance companies, who are part of the Obamacare cabal, and who Democrats are trying to blame for the myriad coverage disruptions plaguing Americans. Conservatives have solutions for covering people with pre-existing conditions, too. What about the litany of other shattered promises, Congresswoman? Kirkpatrick squeaked by in 2012, carrying less than 49 percent of the vote in her close re-election. The New York Times reported this week that she and a fellow vulnerable Arizona Democrat have been heavily targeted by a cascade of critical ads from Americans for Prosperity:
Democrats are increasingly anxious about an onslaught of television ads hitting vulnerable Senate and House candidates for their support of the new health law, since many lack the resources to fight back in the early stages of the midterm campaign. Since September, Americans for Prosperity, a group financed in part by the billionaire Koch brothers, has spent an estimated $20 million on television advertising that calls out House and Senate Democrats by name for their support of the Affordable Care Act. The unusually aggressive early run of television ads, which has been supplemented by other conservative initiatives, has gone largely unanswered, and strategists in both parties agree it is taking a toll on its targets.
The AFP air campaign's top target is Sen. Kay Hagan, whose lead has evaporated, and who has resorted to running away from President Obama to save her skin. Hey, Democrats are actually getting outspent over the air for once. Here's one of the commercials pummeling Kirkpatrick:
Meanwhile, the Libre Initiative -- a conservative group focusing on Hispanic outreach -- is blasting away at Obamacare with ads in South Florida:
Obamacare critics have a quiver full of arrows to fire at the failing law over the next year, and proponents may discover that no amount of well-funded spin can explain away results like more dropped coverage and additional premium increases. I'll leave you with some Arkansas tea leaves:
The special election for a northeast Arkansas Senate seat vacated by a lawmaker who resigned over ethics violations will be an early bellwether on the fight to protect the state's Medicaid expansion, as well as Democrats' chances in the November election. Voters head to the polls Tuesday to cast ballots in the special election between Democrat Steve Rockwell and Republican John Cooper for state Senate District 21 seat that covers the Jonesboro area. The winner will serve the remainder of the term of former state Sen. Paul Bookout - a Democrat.
The Democrat in the race out-spent his Republican foe by a three-to-one margin in an area that has not elected a Republican to the State Senate since reconstruction. So how'd the special election turn out?
Paging Senator Pryor...