PA16: DCCC Makes $100K Ad Buy, 1st Ad Hits Kelly on Tax Reform

A punch is dealt.

This week, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee made a $107,000 ad buy into the Pittsburgh market on cable and broadcast for the race between Rep. Mike Kelly (R-Erie) and Democrat Ron DiNicola.

This ad buy, roughly airing from September 25 to October 1, is the first ad buy the DCCC had made into Pennsylvania.  

The Kelly campaign thinks the introduction of the DCCC into the race as a sign the far left wants DiNicola in office.  

“Our campaign is not surprised to see that Nancy Pelosi and her political team are doing whatever they can to elect Ron DiNicola,” said campaign spokesman Mike Barley. “She needs his vote to become Speaker again and the far-left wants his support for their radical agenda.”

The DCCC has also released its first 30 second television ad, “Dealer” hitting Kelly on the tax reform bill and accusing him of passing the bill to help increase his networth.

“2010: Car dealer Mike Kelly is elected to Congress,” said at the beginning of the ad. “And while there, his net worth increased by millions. So it’s no surprise he helped write legislation to give special tax breaks to car dealers, like himself.”

The rest of the ad attempts to contrast the career of DiNicola.

“From leading the charge to give special tax breaks to his fellow car dealers, to increasing his wealth by $10 million while in Washington, it’s clear that Mike Kelly’s priority is to look out for himself, not the people of Western Pennsylvania,” said DCCC Spokesperson Amanda Sherman. “It is time for a change, and with a proven track record of winning tough fights and standing up for workers in Pennsylvania, Marine Veteran Ron DiNicola is up to the challenge.”

The Kelly campaign believes the ad to be totally false.  

“The notion that Congressman Kelly’s individual wealth is at all related to his work in Congress, especially the Tax Cuts & Jobs Act, is desperate, ridiculous, and totally false,” Barley said. “It’s a flat-out lie.”

While fighting back at the DCCC ad, the Kelly campaign did boast about the GOP tax reform bill, believing it has helped the people of Western Pennsylvania.

“Thanks to Congressman Kelly’s leadership, Congress was able to pass the first tax reform law in 31 years that lowered taxes for everyone and helped all businesses grow,” Barley said. “The results are undeniable: more take-home pay for middle-income families and workers and a booming economy with more job openings than ever before. With millions of taxpayers now getting to keep more of their hard-earned money, the Tax Cuts & Jobs Act has been a huge win for everyone in Western Pennsylvania. When a law is this successful, the only thing its opponents can do is lie about it.”

Kelly’s second television ad detailed his support of the tax reform bill.

The DiNicola campaign has also focused on Kelly’s support of the GOP tax reform bill in ads and echoed the sentiment in the DCCC attack ad.

“Our focus is making sure voters know there is a clear choice between Ron, who has a record of service in the Marines and fighting for local workers who were getting shafted by the federal government, and Congressman Kelly’s record of enriching himself in Congress, including his support of the ‘Kelly Kickback’,” said Tony Coppola, DiNicola’s campaign manager.

Despite the DCCC ad buy, the Kelly campaign feels confident that their message is resonating with voters.

He is focusing on the issues that matter most to Western Pennsylvanians, including making the tax cuts for middle-class families permanent, protecting health care for workers and seniors, strengthening our military, and fulfilling our nation’s commitment to our veterans,” Barley said. “At the end of the day, we’re more confident than ever that Congressman Kelly’s successful record will earn him another term.”

7 Responses

  1. DiNicola has yet to propose a real policy solution. So far I have seen him toe-the-line with the Dems, reiterate he was a Marine (who was able to replace his duty time with boxing) and that he was the lawyer for Erie GE workers he touts as a success somehow disregarding the fact they once employed 18,000 people in Erie. Just 3 years ago they still employed 4,500 and now down to 2,500 and is expected to reduce that number by about 300 before the end of the year. If this is how he measures a successful effort I say hard pass!
    I’m surprised to see DiNicola swing at Kelly for the Tax Cuts. I can rattle off many business owners who were able to hire more people due to this provision. Is he actually running on cutting jobs?

    1. Whatever happened to the Republicans who howled during the Obama era about spending and deficits? This bill is nothing more than a continuation of the failed Reaganesque trickle down policies that has led to extreme wealth inequality and a swelling deficit. I have not seen a bump in pay from the tax bill and those who claim they have I am very skeptical of. It’s a bad bill and polling shows it is unpopular. DiNicola is smart to attack on it. Very much looking forward to the October 8th debate.

      1. Today’s Conservatives are huge proponents of deficit spending. Even the Freedom caucus. Funny, how they screamed so loud about deficit spending during an actual recession.

      2. I agree with your comment about the GOP seemingly abandoning their call to roll back the huge democratic spending increases. We can all agree on fiscal responsibility. The tax bill is only unpopular by those who don’t understand it. As reported by CNN over 90 percent of the middle class will benefit from it. A quick benefit will be on their tax returns as the child tax credit and others have increased. SO if you have child, you pay less – works for me and my three children. Also I talked to a guy in Lake City who owns a shop and he told me how his buyers had more money to spend due to the tax cut their orders increased. The increase was so much he hired a whole second shift. So to all the propaganda that people are being fed I call foul. Tell that to my buddy who just got promoted to the foreman of that shop. My uncle works at a shop in Erie that was able to buy some much needed equipment because of the tax cuts. That’s why I;m surprised DiNicola would attack it, unless he really has no idea how it affects regular people. I know he’s lived in California for the last 20 years.

        I too am looking forward to the debate. It seems it will likely be the only one.

  2. Great ad. All that is needed to prove or disprove this ad is for Kelly to release his tax returns for public review. The voters can easily see, is he richer now then when he went into Congress. If the answer YES, then he’s either enriched himself by the votes he’s made or he’s double dipping and short changing his constituents by paying more attention to his personal business interests OR perhaps both. Too many of these “small” businessmen have been elected to congress. If they are going to serve in congress then they should be required to divest their business interests to rid these obvious conflicts of interest.

    1. I will disagree with this as long as their activities are not in conflict with their duties as a legislator. If he has good managers and is making money, I don’t think he should be penalized. If taken to the extreme then the only people who could serve are those born into serious money.

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