NRA will spend $1M to support Kavanaugh for Supreme Court: report

The National Rifle Association (NRA) has launched a seven-figure ad campaign that targets potential swing votes in the confirmation of Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court.

USA Today first reported on Tuesday that the organization will spend upwards of $1 million to boost Kavanaugh’s nomination. The NRA released its first ad in the campaign, which touts Kavanaugh as the potential tie-breaking vote on gun rights.

“Four liberal justices oppose your right to self-defense. Four justices support your right to self-defense,” the narrator in the ad states. 

{mosads}

“President Trump chose Brett Kavanaugh to break the tie. Your right to self-defense depends on this vote,” the narrator warns.

USA Today reported that regional ads will target Democratic Sens. Doug Jones (Ala.), Joe Donnelly (Ind.), Joe Manchin (W.Va.) and Heidi Heitkamp (N.D.). All represent states President Trump won in 2016, and all but Jones are up for reelection in November.

Ads will also air in Alaska, targeting Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R), who is considered one of two Republicans who may oppose Kavanaugh. Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) is the other.

The ads will air on national cable and regional broadcasts through Aug. 27, USA Today reported.

Kavanaugh’s nomination to replace retired Justice Anthony Kennedy prompted a flurry of high-priced advertising campaigns from outside groups, as well as an ongoing fierce partisan fight in the Senate.

If confirmed, Kavanaugh would cement a 5-4 conservative majority on the nation’s highest court.

Liberal advocates and some lawmakers have suggested a vote on the Supreme Court vacancy should be put off until after the November midterms, while Republicans have said they intend to vote on Kavanaugh’s nomination this fall.

A number of Democrats have already said they plan to oppose Kavanaugh’s nomination, while others have demanded access to a massive amount of documents related to the judge’s time working in the White House.

Democrats submitted FOIA requests to the CIA, the National Archives, the Department of Justice and the Department of Homeland Security for documents tied to Kavanaugh’s three-year stint as staff secretary for President George W. Bush.