This is what I'm talking about:
http://www.msnbc.com/...
Exactly a week ahead of the midterm elections, one pro-gun control group is reminding voters that Joni Ernst, Iowa’s Republican Senate nominee, supports the federal loophole that allows convicted felons and domestic abusers to purchase firearms without background checks.
Americans for Responsible Solutions (ARS) – the organization founded by former Arizona Rep. Gabrielle Giffords after she was critically wounded in a shooting outside of a Tucson supermarket in 2011 – on Tuesday released a new advertisement, titled “Wrong” warning voters about
“It’s dangerous when a convicted felon or domestic abuser gets their hands on one. But Joni Ernst won’t vote to close the loophole that lets some dangerous people still get guns,” Story County Sheriff Paul Fitzgerald says in the commercial. Under the current federal law, residents can purchase firearms at gun shows and online without first passing a background check.
The National Rifle Association (NRA) began endorsing Ernst ahead of the primary election in May when she first became her state’s Republican nominee. She has been a lifetime member of the country’s leading firearms organization, and maintains an “A” rating for her efforts in protecting the rights of gun owners. The gun lobby spent $3,467,347 on Ernst, according to text in the new video.
“She’s wrong to put Washington money before Iowa common sense,” Fitzgerald says. - MSNBC, 10/28/14
Speaking of guns, the NRA is trying to tie Bruce Braley (D. IA) to Michael Bloomberg:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/...
Back in 2010, Braley spoke at an event sponsored by No Labels, a nonpartisan group which seeks to urge politicians to move beyond party labels to focus on pressing issues. After he spoke, his office issued a news release (featured in the NRA ad) that noted that Braley, who spoke of growing up in a bipartisan household, was “joined by a bipartisan group of current and former elected officials, including Sens. Joe Lieberman (I-CT) and Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Rep. Bob Inglis (R-SC) and New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg (I), among others.”
But there’s no evidence that Braley and Bloomberg were there at the same time, let alone met. The video of the event shows that Braley spoke for about five minutes during the morning session, while Bloomberg appeared as part of an afternoon panel hours later. Busy politicians generally don’t hang out at conferences such as this, but simply show up when scheduled.
The NRA skates past this choreography by using weasel words – they were “both at the same event” and “look at this” — while juxtaposing a photograph of Bloomberg during his panel with a photograph of Braley speaking. There is a small rip between the photographs, framed by an American flag, so a casual viewer might think it is a single photograph. (The Fact Checker had to pause the video to notice the rip, as the two photos only appear for three seconds in the 30-second ad.)
The Braley staff points to two tweets that they say show that Braley and Bloomberg did not cross paths that day — one from Sarah Benzing, Bruce’s current campaign manager and former chief of staff, and the other from Matt Canter, who was staffing Gillibrand that day
“The intent of the ad is to tell Iowa voters Braley and Bloomberg share the same views and support the same extremist gun control measures,” said NRA spokesman Andrew Arulanandam, who acknowledged that the photos were taken separately.“Our charge is that they are allied, they were at the same event, and Braley is slick.”
Certainly, the NRA has a serious policy dispute with Braley, who earns an “F” rating from the NRA. He is also running against a proud gun owner who displays her weapon in her ads, vowing to unload on Obamacare. - Washington Post, 10/28/14
Giffords group isn't the only group going after Ernst in the final push:
http://atr.rollcall.com/...=
The National Education Association will start airing a new ad Tuesday attacking Joni Ernst on education.
The ad, provided first to CQ Roll Call, features voters speaking directly to camera as a narrator attacks Ernst’s record on education.
“Joni Ernst is leading the fight to take funding from public school students and give it to wealthy private schools instead,” a male narrator says.
“Ernst would eliminate the Department of Education, cutting almost a billion dollars from Iowa schools and putting college out of reach,” he ads.
“Joni Ernst just isn’t someone we can trust,” a woman says at the close of the ad.
The ad will run through Nov. 3 in the Davenport and Des Moines media markets, according to an NEA spokesman. The buy is just more than $500,000. - Roll Call, 10/28/14
Things are looking better for Braley. He's up in the latest polls:
http://www.politicususa.com/...
A new Loras College Poll of Iowa’s Senate race reveals a very tight election with Democrat Bruce Braley leading Republican Joni Ernst 45%-44%.
Bloomberg News reported, “In results released Tuesday, Democrat Bruce Braley is supported by 45 percent of likely voters while Republican Joni Ernst has the backing of 44 percent. Eight percent remain undecided, and two percent plan to vote for another candidate, according to the poll. Braley’s advantage is well within the 2.9 percentage point margin of error….Among those who have already cast their ballots during Iowa’s early voting period, Budzisz said Braley had a six-point edge. Braley also has a small advantage among independent voters, 43.8 percent to 40.4 percent. The survey was conducted Oct. 21-24.”
It is too soon to tell is Ernst is being punished by voters for blowing off her scheduled appearances with the state’s newspaper editorial boards, but the election remains close. What is already the most overused cliche of the 2014 election definitely applies to the Iowa Senate race. - Politicus USA, 10/28/14
He picked up another newspaper endorsement:
http://www.dailyiowan.com/...
Naturally, in Iowa we must consider the candidates’ policies for agriculture and the environment. Ernst does have the support of the Iowa Farm Bureau, and both she and Braley seem to have sound policy proposals, such as their mutual opposition to a reduction in the Renewable Fuel Standard. But on overall environmental policy, Ernst has made her stance clear: She’ll shut down the EPA. In a time of increased awareness and action on issues like climate change, this is a step backwards.
Braley, however, is certainly not the ideal candidate in this political climate.
According to a CNN poll released Monday, 7 in 10 Americans are angry at the direction the country is headed. In addition, 53 percent disapprove of Obama’s performance. It is true that Braley has largely been an advocate of the president’s policies.
Iowa’s economy has also been doing well relative to the nation, which Ernst claims is due to the state’s different approach. Iowa’s unemployment rate is 4.6 percent, almost a full percentage-point drop from a year ago, under Republican Gov. Terry Branstad. The facts show that there may be some validity to Ernst’s economic claims.
Nonetheless, the Daily Iowan Editorial Board believes that while there is no slam-dunk winner here, Braley has the edge for an endorsement. A senator representing Iowa should be more focused on doing just that, representing Iowa. Braley has consistently made it clear that his first focus would be Iowans, not opposing Obama on national issues and closing down federal agencies. We think that should be recognized. - The Daily Iowan, 10/28/14
And he's getting a special guest on the campaign trail:
http://www.desmoinesregister.com/...
James Taylor wants you to vote for Bruce Braley.
The singer-songwriter known for "Fire & Rain" and "Carolina on my Mind," among other songs, will share a stage with Iowa's Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate and former President Bill Clinton on Saturday in Des Moines.
Braley's campaign announced his addition to the planned "Iowa Votes" rally with Clinton this afternoon.
Taylor is a long-time supporter of Democratic candidates, and the timing just happened to work out for the joint appearance with Clinton: he's performing Saturday evening at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines. - The Des Moines Register, 10/27/14
Click here to donate and get involved with Braley's campaign:
http://www.brucebraley.com/