Although it is still very much a seasonal category, political increasingly books time whether or not an election is on the horizon. The latest to inspire an ad flight is South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford (R). Sanford has promised to reject $700M in economic stimulus money for his state, prompting the Democratic National Committee to go to the state capital in Columbia and buy some television time in order to accuse Sanford of playing politics with his constituents’’ health, education and livelihood. And although not included in the script, DNC went ahead and cited Rush Limbaugh.
In the release, DNC said, “Despite record unemployment and soaring foreclosures, Governor Sanford is kowtowing to the Rush Limbaugh-led obstructionist wing of his political party by rejecting $700 million in money to create jobs, improve our health care system and improve our schools.”
DNC points out that members of both parties in the state government want all of the money allocated to South Carolina to be used there.
RBR/TVBR observation: The battle over the economic stimulus plan has led to a number of advertising flights, most of which have been aimed at federal legislators considered vulnerable by one party or the other. As far as we know this is the first time a governor has been dragged through the airwaves. As a whole, South Carolina has seemingly been a safe bet for the Republican Party when it comes to statewide office. It’s hard to believe the DNC thinks the state house may be in play, but in this day and age, who knows?
