The conservative network controlled by billionaire megadonor Charles Koch – though vowing to stay out of the presidential race – released a new ad invoking Hillary Clinton in an attack on Ohio's Democratic Senate candidate Ted Strickland.
The 30-second commercial from Freedom Partners Action Fund, titled "Josh," features a controversial Clinton quote vowing that in a transition to clean energy, "We're going to put a lot of coal miners and coal companies out of business, right?"
"Seeing Ted Strickland stand with Hillary Clinton after what she said really hurts us here in the coal industry," the title character in the ad, a worker from Ohio's coal country, declares.
The new spot, part of a "$1 million ad buy in Ohio, launches alongside another, "Bad for Ohio," that aims to sway voters associated with the struggling coal industry, The Hill reports.
USA Today reports the commercial buy marks the first time the Koch group has used Clinton's name in its advertising, illustrating a strategy to undermine Clinton and other Democrats with working-class white men.
"As we have said before, we are not engaging in the presidential, however, showing how Ted Strickland has been a rubber stamp for Hillary Clinton's job-killing agenda is the most relevant and impactful message in this state," Freedom Partners spokesman James Davis said in a statement, USA Today reports.
Freedom Partners' has pumped nearly $10 million into the Ohio Senate race to attack Strickland, a former governor running against incumbent GOP Sen. Rob Portman.
According to a Real Clear Politics averaging of polls, Clinton leads Trump in Ohio by 4.8 points; Portman is up 6.4 percentage points over Strickland.
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