Can you blame a grandma for speaking her mind? Scott Garrett has pulled the wool over our eyes. Enough is enough. pic.twitter.com/GsjiNI733X
— Josh Gottheimer (@JoshGottheimer) October 24, 2016
The ad starts innocently enough: A small boy runs around in front of his grandmother, who’s seated on a park bench.
Then she starts tearing into vulnerable Rep. Scott Garrett (R-N.J.).
“He voted against equal pay for women. Are you f—ing kidding me?” she asks.
{mosads}She adds that Garrett voted against healthcare aid for 9/11 first responders — “total [expletive]” — and expressed opposition to gay congressional candidates.
“Scott Garrett pulled the wool over our eyes. And I’m f—ing mad about it,” she declares.
The ad is paid for by Josh Gottheimer, the Democrat who has forced Garrett into the toughest race of his congressional career.
Garrett, a member of the hard-line House Freedom Caucus, has served in the House since 2003. He became one of the most endangered GOP incumbents this cycle in part because of his refusal to pay dues to the House GOP campaign arm over its recruitment of gay candidates.
Those comments, leaked to Politico last year, damaged Garrett’s support from the financial services industry and deprived him of needed campaign cash.
Between that and redistricting that’s made the district slightly less favorable to Republicans, Garrett is on a much tougher path to reelection this year.
Garrett is also far behind on fundraising compared to his opponent. Gottheimer, a former Clinton White House speechwriter, has raised $4 million, compared with Garrett’s $1.9 million.