A campaign ad for Sen. Heidi Heitkamp (D-ND) that touted her bipartisan credentials mysteriously disappeared from Internet the day after the senator announced her opposition to Supreme Court Justice nominee Judge Brett Kavanaugh.
Sen. Heitkamp announced a new ad on Thursday, entitled “Every Day,” in which she touted her independence from the political system and how she agrees with both Democrats and Republicans on varying issues.
“Too many Democrats don’t appreciate our commitment to faith and self-reliance or recognize that we know how to handle guns safely,” Heitkamp said. “And while Republicans too often side with the powerful, Democrats too often judge how we live. And both parties do nothing but fight.”
NBC News reported on Thursday that the ad serves as part of a six-figure ad buy running on cable and broadcast television and on digital platforms as well.
The ad came out the same day that the North Dakota Democrat, who claims to be bipartisan, also announced her opposition to President Donald Trump’s Supreme Court nominee Judge Kavanaugh.
Heitkamp told a local North Dakota news station, “The process has been bad but, at the end of the day, you have to make a decision, and I’ve made that decision. I will be voting no on Judge Kavanaugh.”
The ad enflamed political controversy, as she claimed to be bipartisan on the same day that she said she will oppose the president’s nominee. The North Dakota Republican Party quickly denounced the campaign ad.
There remains one hitch for readers who might want to watch the campaign ad– the ad no longer exists on YouTube, her campiagn YouTube account, her Instagram page, her Facebook page, nor does it exist on Heitkamp’s campaign website. An NBC News article references the ad and even embeds the article on the page, but the video is no longer “available” on YouTube.
The North Dakota Republican Party also confirms the existence of the ad, considering they released a press release attacking the ad on Thursday. It remains unclear if the ad will continue to be played on television given that it no longer exists on the Internet.
Sean Higgins, Heitkamp’s press secretary, tweeted out the NBC news article of the ad in which Heitkamp “flexes her independence.”
Higgins wrote on Thursday, “Heitkamp in new statewide TV and digital ad: “While Republicans too often side with the powerful, Democrats too often judge how we live.” Heidi’s always been a tough, independent voice for North Dakota. That’ll never change. #ndsen #ndpol.”
Heitkamp in new statewide TV and digital ad: “While Republicans too often side with the powerful, Democrats too often judge how we live.”
Heidi’s always been a tough, independent voice for North Dakota. That’ll never change. #ndsen #ndpol https://t.co/yAm6nzNtxj
— Sean Higgins (@smhigg) October 5, 2018
Sen. Heitkamp’s campaign did not respond to multiple requests for comment on what happened to the campaign ad in question.
Jake Wilkins, the North Dakota Republican Party communications director, told Breitbart News in an exclusive statement on Friday that it is no surprise that the Heitkamp campaign will try to remove this ad given that her campaign has tried and failed to rewrite her liberal voting record.
“This is no surprise,” Wilkins told Breitbart News. “With just over a month left until the election, the Heitkamp campaign is desperately scrambling to rewrite her out-of-touch, liberal voting record; but it’s not working.”
Wilkins slammed the Heitkamp ad on Thursday, claiming that she claims to be a bipartisan even though she has lied about her “liberal record.” Wilkins said in a statement on Thursday, “Her new ad ‘Every Day’ makes it clear Heidi Heitkamp is going to spend ‘Every Day’ lying about her liberal record. Heitkamp was elected to represent the people of North Dakota in the Senate, but she has failed, and a new TV ad can’t erase that.”
Heitkamp’s decision to vote against Kavanaugh serves as a dangerous political risk in a state that Donald Trump won by 35 points in the 2016 presidential election. A Fox News poll found that Cramer has a 12-point lead over Heitkamp. In the last Fox News poll, Cramer only had a four-point lead.
The Fox News poll also found that if Heitkamp were to vote against Kavanaugh, 34 percent would be less likely to vote for her, whereas only 17 percent would be likely to vote for her.
The Judicial Crisis Network (JCN) released a poll Tuesday showing that 56 percent of North Dakotans want Kavanaugh confirmed to the Supreme Court. A majority of independents, 51 percent, also want the nominee added to the Supreme Court. Fifty percent of women want Kavanaugh on the Supreme Court as well.
Rep. Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Heitkamp’s Republican challenger, slammed the North Dakota Democrat on Thursday, saying that she sided with Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and the “extreme left” over North Dakotans.
“I’m deeply disappointed with Senator Heitkamp’s decision to vote no on Judge Kavanaugh’s nomination to the Supreme Court,” Rep. Cramer said in a statement on Thursday. “Clearly, she has decided to vote with Chuck Schumer, and not the people of North Dakota,” Cramer added.
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