Crossroads GPS Working Overtime Against Kaine

By Julie Sobel  //  September 11, 2012 | 3:41 p.m.

Updated at 8:36 p.m.

Crossroads GPS is up with a new Senate ad blitz today, as we reported this morning. But while they launched one new ad hitting Shelley Berkley in Nevada and another attacking Sherrod Brown in Ohio, there are notably three different commercials going after Tim Kaine in Virginia.

It's not news that the ultra-close Senate race in Virginia is a priority for Crossroads -- the group has been attacking Kaine for months. But it's not the norm for the group to run more than one ad simultaneously in a Senate race, suggesting they haven't settled on a message against Kaine.

One Virginia Democrat said that GOP super PACs have spent over $10 million hitting Kaine over the course of the race, and the effort hasn't moved the former governor's numbers. The Democrat said the multiple-ad approach "smacks a little bit of desperation," and showed the groups "continuing to try to throw the kitchen sink at Kaine."

Two of the three ads are very similar, with just a geographic distinction: Both hit Kaine on making funding cuts to education, but one says the cuts hit Northern Virginia "hardest" and the other says Kaine's last budget "cut millions from public schools, hitting our children hardest." But the third ad takes a different tack, saying Kaine "supported a Washington budget deal that would devastate America's defense and Virginia jobs."

The previous Crossroads GPS blitz in Virginia in mid-August featured the same two lines of attack as the new ads: One hit Kaine for raising taxes and cutting college funding, the other said he endorsed a plan that "puts defense spending at risk," and could cost the state jobs. A Crossroads GPS ad earlier in August focused on the tax hikes/education cut line of attack on Kaine. A July Crossroads GPS ad hit Kaine on the stimulus and "reckless spending." An April Crossroads GPS ad also brought up "reckless spending" but also tied Kaine to President Obama, who is also locked in a tight race in the state -- something we haven't seen in their more recent ad campaigns in Virginia. "Both presidential campaigns rightly suspended negative ads today," said Kaine in a release responding to the new ads. "It is a sad reflection of the divisiveness of our politics that outside groups like Crossroads GPS cannot set aside false partisan attacks even as our elected officials and citizens of all walks of life, political parties, and religious faiths join together to honor the dead, thank our first responders and service members, and celebrate the freedoms we enjoy as a nation." The latest Crossroads ads are the first to go up since Kaine began his own advertising campaign a few weeks ago. Meanwhile, GOP nominee George Allen is not currently airing ads.

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