I can guarantee that the only shots Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA) plans to take at her opponents this fall will be verbal. But, if you get a load of Eddie Mauro's latest campaign ad, you'd think she was planning to use him for real target practice.
You've seen bad ads. But have you seen one this bad?
Eddie Mauro, a progressive Democrat hoping to unseat Ernst, just shared his latest ad spot on Twitter. In it, he explains that one of the reasons he's running against Ernst is because "she thinks it's okay to run an ad glorifying guns," referring to a 2014 ad her campaign ran in which she demonstrated her skills with a firearm. It was harmless - she was only firing her gun in a practice range. And it included cute slogans like, "Give me a shot." It was an effective ad and a pretty good use of 30 seconds.
But Mauro's campaign doctored it a bit to give you the impression that she was aiming for him.
Wow.
— Matt Whitlock (@mattdizwhitlock) December 5, 2019
Iowa Democrat @eddiejmauro -- who stepped on a rake when he entered the race by suggesting veterans didn't make good elected officials -- has a new ad where he's edited footage of Joni Ernst shooting a gun in a range so it looks like she's shooting him. pic.twitter.com/T5pSYIrtVF
"While she's afraid to stand up to the NRA and common sense gun laws, I'm ready to stand up for Iowans to keep our schools and our communities and our kids safe," Mauro told the camera.
Then, a couple of bullets that appear to be from Ernst's gun nearly graze him, hitting the fence behind him.
Mauro approved the message, but not many others did.
Team Ernst implored the Mauro campaign to take down their "disgusting" ad.
It’s outrageous and offensive that @eddiejmauro would make light of gun violence in order to help his campaign. He should be ashamed and this disgusting ad should be taken down immediately. #IASen #IAPolitics https://t.co/yPXj4tHEON
— Team Joni (@TeamJoni) December 5, 2019