As of today, ad spending and reservations from Cal Cunningham and his allies the DSCC, VoteVets, dark money group VoteVets Action Fund, and Super PAC Carolina Blue hit $12.63 million.
In an interview with CBS 17 yesterday, Cunningham was asked about the hypocrisy of relying on outside groups to help get him through a competitive primary. He tried to brush off the outside money being spent on his behalf by saying it had “no equivalency” to other groups spending in this race.
Quite literally, because $12.63 million is far more than any other spending.
Cunningham bristled when asked whether he was coordinating with the outside groups spending on his behalf. It probably made him uncomfortable because of the two complaints against his campaign for “improper coordination” after it posted b-roll that ended up in VoteVets ads.
Watch the interview here.
“For someone who says he wants to get outside money out of politics, Cal Cunningham sure is depending on it to win his primary,” NRSC spokesperson Joanna Rodriguez said. “The $12.63 million and counting being spent in his favor dwindles any other spending in this race. Cunningham’s desperation not to repeat history and lose a second Senate primary makes it more evident than ever how weak Chuck Schumer’s hand-picked candidate is.”
A few other things worth noting:
Last week, the DSCC Communications Director sent a signal to outside groups that Cunningham needed more help on the airwaves.
Super PAC Carolina Blue and VoteVets responded with new ad buys, including another $1.56 million buy from VoteVets.
The DSCC also increased their buy, bringing their coordinated spending to over 44% of what they are allowed to spend on behalf of Democratic candidates in the Senate race.
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