WASHINGTON — While most of the Republican presidential candidates (sans former President Donald Trump) debated Wednesday over which one was the best to take on President Joe Biden in 2024, the incumbent’s campaign committee was spending $25 million over 16 weeks on an advertising campaign in Pennsylvania and other battleground states.
In the Keystone State, those ads are running in the Pittsburgh, Philadelphia and Scranton-Wilkes Barre markets. They are airing on broadcast and cable stations, as well as on digital platforms such as YouTube and Hulu. The campaign said some ads will run during National Football League games and the World Series.
“This historic buy ensures that the president’s message reaches all Americans where they receive their news, and sends a clear sign that we are investing in an aggressive, meaningful, and effective paid media strategy,” campaign manager Julie Chavez Rodriguez said. “While Republicans duke it out in Milwaukee over their divisive and unpopular agenda, President Biden is amplifying his winning message and leadership as a president for all Americans.”
Some of the ads will run on outlets that appeal to Black and Hispanic voters, two groups whose support will be key to Mr. Biden’s re-election efforts. He received the backing of 87% of Black voters and 65% of Hispanic voters in 2020, according to network exit polls reported by CNN.
In other Washington news:
Republican ad campaign targets Rep. Deluzio
The House Republicans’ political arm is using billboards and digital ads to bash Rep. Chris Deluzio, D-Aspinwall, and other endangered House Democrats over rising gasoline prices.
On Tuesday, the average price of a gallon of regular gasoline was $3.902 in Pennsylvania, up from $3.706 a month earlier, according to AAA.
"Rising gas prices are a fresh gut punch to millions of Americans already struggling under Bidenomics," National Republican Congressional Committee spokesman Jack Pandol said. "Every trip to the pump is a reminder that extreme House Democrats put their radical war on American energy ahead of working families’ wallets."
Mr. Deluzio, a freshman, is considered the most vulnerable House member in Western Pennsylvania. The Cook Political Report and Inside Elections gives him a slight edge.
Two Republicans so far have announced their candidacies to take on Mr. Deluzio: state Rep. Rob Mercuri of Pine and the Rev. Jim Nelson, the senior pastor of New Birth Ministries in Duquesne.
U.S. Sen. Walter White? Is Fetterman really breaking that bad?
U.S. Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., cooked up some activity on social media after shaving his signature goatee and growing a mustache — paying off the bet he made after his teenage son beat him at chess.
That drew comparisons to Walter White, the chemistry teacher and crystal meth kingpin in AMC’s “Breaking Bad.”
The beardless Mr. Fetterman displayed his new look in a tweet. With his black glasses and mustache, he bore a striking resemblance to the antihero played by Bryan Cranston. He explained that he “lost a bet with Karl,” added a Groucho Marx emoji, and sparked hundreds of responses.
Lost a bet with Karl ???? pic.twitter.com/D9XKEYHivj
— John Fetterman (@JohnFetterman) August 19, 2023
Several commenters posted their own lookalike photos, while others suggested the change was linked to debunked conspiracy theories alleging Mr. Fetterman — who suffered a stroke during last year’s campaign and later checked himself into a hospital to be treated for depression — is using a body double.
Others complimented the senator’s new look.
“Did you punch Tom Selleck out and steal his mustache, sir?” asked attorney Beth Bourbon.
“Got a bit of Walter White there,” tweeted Charles Matthews, a University of Virginia professor. “Useful for negotiations.”
The senator’s wife, Gisele, told Philadelphia Magazine that it wasn’t just social media users who got a kick out of the jokes.
Her children are “huge ‘Breaking Bad’ fans,” she said.
Jonathan D. Salant: jsalant@post-gazette.com, @JDSalant; Benjamin Kail: bkail@post-gazette.com, @BenKail
First Published: August 24, 2023, 9:30 a.m.
Updated: August 24, 2023, 2:05 p.m.
