North Carolina Republican Ilario Pantano's eventual goal is to knock off Rep. Mike McIntyre, D-N.C., but first he's working to cut down his leading primary challenger, state Sen.David Rouzer, with a blistering TV ad that runs through the holiday weekend.
The 2010 GOP nominee's 60-second TV spot stars Tuesday on Wilmington broadcast and cable, slamming Rouzer for lobbying work on behalf of immigration reform. He's also launching an accompanying website, www.RouzerForAmnesty.com, to continue the attacks.
The 2010 GOP nominee's 60-second TV spot stars Tuesday on Wilmington broadcast and cable, slamming Rouzer for lobbying work on behalf of immigration reform. He's also launching an accompanying website, www.RouzerForAmnesty.com, to continue the attacks.
Pantano pulls no punches in the minute-long spot, even comparing the state senator to President Obama, the late Sen. Ted Kennedy, D-Mass., and Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif.
"Raleigh lobbyist and politician David Rouzer collected a fat paycheck to push a liberal plan to provide amnesty for illegal aliens," the ad says. "Not just amnesty for one point five million illegal agriculture workers, but amnesty to one point eight million family members of illegals.
A Marine veteran who lost in 2010 by 8 points to McIntyre, Pantano is vying again for the GOP nomination, but faces stiff competition from Rouzer, who many DC and Tar Heel Republicans see as the stronger candidate against the veteran congressman.
Pantano has been outraised by Rouzer and only pulled in a meager $65,000 to Rouzer's over $200,000 in the last fundraising quarter. Still, both were included on the National Republican Congressional Committee's "Young Guns" program.
But Pantano has signaled he isn't going away quietly, and this initial ad blitz is further evidence of that. Last month, Pantano released his own internal poll showing him leading Rouzer by over 20 points, and he also won this past weekend's North Carolina GOP straw poll by a two-to-one margin.
Watch the full ad after the jump.
"Raleigh lobbyist and politician David Rouzer collected a fat paycheck to push a liberal plan to provide amnesty for illegal aliens," the ad says. "Not just amnesty for one point five million illegal agriculture workers, but amnesty to one point eight million family members of illegals.
A Marine veteran who lost in 2010 by 8 points to McIntyre, Pantano is vying again for the GOP nomination, but faces stiff competition from Rouzer, who many DC and Tar Heel Republicans see as the stronger candidate against the veteran congressman.
Pantano has been outraised by Rouzer and only pulled in a meager $65,000 to Rouzer's over $200,000 in the last fundraising quarter. Still, both were included on the National Republican Congressional Committee's "Young Guns" program.
But Pantano has signaled he isn't going away quietly, and this initial ad blitz is further evidence of that. Last month, Pantano released his own internal poll showing him leading Rouzer by over 20 points, and he also won this past weekend's North Carolina GOP straw poll by a two-to-one margin.
Watch the full ad after the jump.