A pro-Sen. Ted Cruz super PAC is out with new attack ads against struggling GOP presidential contender Sen. Marco Rubio — airing in his home state — on issues including sugar subsidies, Rubio's tax plan, amnesty and national defense.
The 30-seconds spots were posted to the YouTube channel of
Keep The Promise I Sunday night.
"We had so much fun winning Sen. Cruz's home state by 17 points, we thought why not repeat that in Sen. Rubio's home state?" Kellyanne Conway, the Republican strategist who heads Keep the Promise I, said in an email, according to
Politico.
"They'll be on the air, including if not especially in [Florida]."
Politico reports the group is funded mostly by $11 million from hedge fund magnate Robert Mercer, and had $2.75 million on hand at the end of January.
Cruz's campaign internally has considered making a Florida swing this week, though there aren't any announced plans to do so, Politico reports.
Florida's primary is March 15, and
Rubio is counting on a win to keep his presidential bid viable.
"Rubio is playing catch-up in a state he's barely visited, and where Rubio as the tea party insurgent of 2010 has been replaced by amnesty-backing, establishment-blessed Rubio of 2016," Conway says, Politico reports.
"That dog won't hunt."
In the sugar subsidies ad, Rubio is accused of "making it snow for Big Sugar in Washington," and calls Rubio's support of subsidies while receiving contributions from the sugar industry "pay to play corporate cronyism," with the narrator calling Rubio "the king of corporate welfare."
Another hits the Florida lawmaker for his support of the "Gang of 8" immigration legislation that included a path to legalization for those in the United States illegally.
While another hits Rubio on national defense and his Senate attendance and includes a past clip of Rubio saying skipping a vote is the equivalent of a "no" vote, with the narrator asking: "So if not voting is voting against it, was Rubio voting against defense spending and fighting ISIS?"
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