Let the mudslinging begin. The gauntlet has been thrown by candidates for Florida’s ultra-competitive 13th Congressional District and both are leaving no holds barred as they battle it out to head to Congress.
Democrats have launched an all-out offensive against incumbent David Jolly, criticizing the Republican congressman as being “out of touch” when it comes to women’s issues and their right to choose.
The ad, “One Word,” uses various women from Pinellas County describing Jolly as “dangerous” and “backwards,” then says Jolly supports GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump’s stance on women’s issues.
“From opposing a woman’s right to choose to denying women basic health care, David Jolly and Donald Trump both represent a big step backwards for Pinellas County and the country,” said House Majority PAC Executive Director Alixandria Lapp. “Their shared agenda clearly is dangerous, backwards, and out of touch. By every measure, David Jolly is just not for women in FL-13.”
Jolly’s team dismissed the ad, trashing Crist for his relentless ambitions to take any office in Florida to keep his name in the spotlight.
“Mr. Crist’s 30-year political career is hanging on by a thread,” Jolly campaign spokesman Max Goodman wrote in an email. “He knows it. We know it. Life without politics is a scary proposition for Mr. Crist.”
Jolly’s campaign team goes on to quote a 2006 article where Crist says he would sign off on an abortion ban similar to one in South Dakota, where nearly all abortions were outlawed at the time.
“Promoting a culture of life is preferable to me than passing laws,” Crist said at the time.
Crist has been out of office since 2011, but has made bids for the U.S. Senate and later for the governor’s office in 2014.
The ad, produced by the House Majority PAC, debuted Tuesday in the Tampa Bay area and has already had heavy rotation on TV airwaves. The House Majority PAC says its mission is “holding Republicans accountable” and electing Democrats to Congress. The PAC will spend $1.4 million to help Crist win the election.
Jolly’s team didn’t take the ad lying down.
Later in the day, his team released an ad slamming Crist for his credibility, citing his flip-flopping on an economic stimulus package, Barack Obama’s healthcare law, oil drilling and his own political stances when he ran as an Independent Party candidate in the 2010 U.S. Senate race.
The ad draws from a 2010 Palm Beach Post editorial interview which pointed out several position changes by Crist. Other flip-flops included favoring a gay adoption ban on Floridians. The Editorial Board points out that Crist said he thought children would do best in a home with both a mother and father.
Crist pauses for several seconds before saying he still felt children would do best in a heterosexual household.
The CD13 is already turning out to be one of the closest and most hotly-contested races in the state.
The general election will be held Nov. 8.
Watch the ads below.
Reach reporter Allison Nielsen by email at allison@sunshinestatenews.com or follow her on Twitter: @AllisonNielsen.
