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Senate GOP’s campaign arm buys $1M in ads targeting Democrats’ voting rights bill

25 March 2021
 Dan Ackermann

Senate Republicans' main campaign arm will unveil a seven-figure ad campaign in Georgia, Arizona, Nevada and New Hampshire targeting Democrats’ effort to expand voting, Axios has learned.

Why it matters: These are the National Republican Senatorial Committee's (NRSC) first TV ads of the 2022 midterms cycle and show how potent S.1 (the Senate's version of H.R. 1) is for Republicans — both in how it would overhaul the nation's elections and as a messaging tool.

  • The group told Axios it sees these four states as the Senate Republicans' prime targets to unseat Democrat incumbent Sens. Raphael Warnock of Georgia, Mark Kelly of Arizona, Catherine Cortez Masto of Nevada and Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire.

Details: The ads, which will begin airing on Monday, focus on what the GOP says are the most unpopular aspects of the bill, according to their internal polling.

  • They slam the bill as a Democratic "power grab" that would "eliminate voter ID laws," implement automatic voter-registration and "force taxpayers to fund" campaigns.
  • Fact check: The bill doesn't necessarily "ban" voter ID laws, but it provides workarounds for voters without identification. It also wouldn’t fund campaigns, but it would match donations less than $200 6-to-1.
  • The ads will air in English in all four states, and English and Spanish in Arizona and Nevada.
  • See one of the ads, titled "Power Grab," that air in Georgia.

What they're saying: “Senate Democrats claim they are fighting to protect our elections, but the reality is far different," NRSC Chairman, Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) said in a statement.

  • "H.R. 1 – the Corrupt Politician Act - is an assault on American taxpayers," he added. 
  • "Senators Warnock, Kelly, Cortez Masto and Hassan will have a lot of explaining to do over the next two years and a lot to answer for in 2022.”

Between the lines: H.R. 1 has proven to be a galvanizing issue for the right. Fearing a federalized election system, several conservative grassroots groups are pouring money into advertising and other campaigns to prevent its passage.

  • Heritage Action for America, the Heritage Foundation's non-profit, recently launched a $10 million initiative against the bill.
  • Susan B. Anthony List partnered with the American Principles Project to launch a new Election Transparency Initiative, led by former Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security Ken Cuccinelli opposing the legislation.
  • Tea Party Patriots, Republicans Attorney Generals Association and the Foundation for Government Accountability have launched similar efforts.

Transcripts show George Floyd told police "I can't breathe" over 20 times

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Newly released transcripts of bodycam footage from the Minneapolis Police Department show that George Floyd told officers he could not breathe more than 20 times in the moments leading up to his death.

Why it matters: Floyd's killing sparked a national wave of Black Lives Matter protests and an ongoing reckoning over systemic racism in the United States. The transcripts "offer one the most thorough and dramatic accounts" before Floyd's death, The New York Times writes.

The state of play: The transcripts were released as former officer Thomas Lane seeks to have the charges that he aided in Floyd's death thrown out in court, per the Times. He is one of four officers who have been charged.

  • The filings also include a 60-page transcript of an interview with Lane. He said he "felt maybe that something was going on" when asked if he believed that Floyd was having a medical emergency at the time.

What the transcripts say:

  • Floyd told the officers he was claustrophobic as they tried to get him into the squad car.
  • The transcripts also show Floyd saying, "Momma, I love you. Tell my kids I love them. I'm dead."
  • Former officer Derek Chauvin, who had his knee on Floyd's neck for over eight minutes, told Floyd, "Then stop talking, stop yelling, it takes a heck of a lot of oxygen to talk."

Read the transcripts via DocumentCloud.