Toomey forced to change ad featuring Gabby Giffords endorsement
WASHINGTON — A prominent gun control group founded by former Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords has asked Sen. Pat Toomey (R., Pa.) to pull down or change a new TV ad featuring her endorsement.
A consultant for the organization, Americans for Responsible Solutions, said Friday night that the ad was "unauthorized."
The group's backing has bolstered Toomey's argument that he is an independent-minded problem solver. But the organization objected to the way Toomey used Giffords' photo and name in a spot that attacked his Democratic challenger, Katie McGinty. The organization stands by its endorsement of the Republican, but also believes McGinty would be an ally on tougher gun laws and does not want to be used to disparage her.
A Toomey spokesman said that the ad, launched earlier Friday, would be changed to reflect the group's concerns, but would continue to tout Giffords' endorsement.
"Pat Toomey is honored to have the support and endorsement of Gabby Giffords and Americans for Responsible Solutions. We are modifying our advertising to better reflect that support," said Toomey spokesman Ted Kwong.
Giffords, a Democrat, became a national advocate for tougher gun laws after being severely wounded in a 2011 mass shooting in Tuscon, Ariz. Her group lent its weight to Toomey in a tight, nationally-watched Senate race due to his sponsorship of a bill to expand background checks for gun purchases, which made him one of the few Republicans to support any new gun laws.
Americans for Responsible Solutions believes it has to have GOP support if it hopes to make any gains in Congress -- even though McGinty backs more of the laws it is pushing for. She supports, for example, a ban on assault-style weapons, while Toomey opposes that idea.
Americans for Responsible Solutions' endorsement has been a critical piece of Toomey's campaign as he tries to win over moderate voters in a left-leaning state, and particularly in the Philadelphia suburbs.
His new ad opens by deriding McGinty as "another partisan politician" and calls her a "partisan extremist" before saying Toomey is "an independent voice." With a picture of Giffords on screen, a narrator says Toomey has been "endorsed by leading independents and Democrats like Gabby Giffords."
Giffords' group does not want her image used in a negative ad, and the consultant said they had already decided not to spend any money in the Pennsylvania race.
Kwong said the campaign will continue highlighting Toomey's "independent leadership" and contrasting it with McGinty's record.
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