Greens pour $1.8m into Pennsylvania Senate race

A pair of environmental groups on Tuesday launched a $1.8 million effort to help elect Democrat Katie McGinty to Pennsylvania’s Senate seat.

The League of Conservation Voters and the Environmental Defense Action Fund are jointly funding a $1.5 million television advertising campaign, while LCV is separately funding a $300,000 canvassing campaign.

{mosads}The groups are trying to convince voters that the incumbent, Sen. Pat Toomey (R), is a close ally of oil-industry polluters, while McGinty is a long-time protector of strong environmental rules.

The Pennsylvania race is a key focus for greens, as it is one of the most likely seats to flip to the Democrats. Taking the seat would be a major step toward their goal of a Senate majority.

The efforts announced Tuesday are the first expenditures for both groups in the general election part of Pennsylvania’s race.

The actions are part of an overall effort to paint McGinty, who led the White House Council on Environmental Quality under President Bill Clinton, as an environmental champion.

The TV ad, targeted to certain areas of the state, declares that “big oil polluters” have a “friend” in Toomey, who voted to protect tax breaks worth $24 billion to them, while the industry gave him $700,000 in campaign contributions.

“He’s helping oil polluters and millionaires. Not the rest of us,” the voiceover says.

“Hard-working Pennsylvania families are ill-served by one of Big Oils’ best friends in Washington, Sen. Pat Toomey — it’s time for him to go,” Clay Schroers, LCV’s national campaigns director, said in a statement about the campaign.

“Toomey has received over $700,000 from Big Oil, a staggering sum that may explain why he has fought to preserve billions in tax breaks for the oil industry and refused to take any action to curb the impacts of climate change.”