Nevada GOP Senate challenger attacks ‘Never Trump’ Sam Brown in ad

The campaign for Jeff Gunter, a Republican Nevada Senate candidate, launched a new ad on Wednesday labeling retired Army Capt. Sam Brown as a “Never Trump” candidate in the state’s GOP primary.

“Two candidates for the U.S. Senate in Nevada. Never Trump Sam Brown,” a narrator says in the 30-second ad, which was first shared with The Hill. 

The ad then plays several clips of an interview that Brown did on Fox Business after announcing his second run for Senate, in which Brown was pressed on Trump’s assertion that he could end an ongoing war waged by Russia in Ukraine in one day and over how Brown would define success in handling the Russia-Ukraine war. The ad shows Brown laughing uncomfortably during the interview. 

“Meet 110 percent pro-Trump ambassador and doctor, Jeff Gunter,” the narrator says in the ad, before the ad shows a clip of an interview Gunter did, saying, “I will work tirelessly to bring back the America First policies that were so great under Trump.”

Gunter served as the U.S. ambassador to Iceland under former President Trump from 2019 to 2021.

The ad, backed by a $10,200 buy, is set to air statewide on Fox News and Fox Business, during the second GOP debate. Gunter, Brown and former Nevada Secretary of State candidate Jim Marchant are the most prominent Republicans running in the Nevada Senate GOP primary to take on Sen. Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.) next fall. 

Gunter has aligned himself with Trump in the GOP primary and has targeted Brown over his lack of loyalty to the former president. He’s called the retired Army captain, “Scam Brown” and in one post on X, Gunter took a jab at Brown for not yet endorsing Trump in the 2024 presidential primary. 

However, some establishment Republicans have praised Brown for entering the race – most notably Sen. Steve Daines (R-Mont.), chairman of the Senate GOP campaign arm, saying he was “pleased” to see Brown running again. 

Marchant, similar to Gunter, has pitched himself as a “Trump-supporting, MAGA movement Republican” –  setting up a contest within the GOP primary between two candidates vying to be the Trump-aligned contender.

Though Trump-aligned candidates like Marchant won their primaries during the 2022 midterms, they struggled to cross the finish line in their respective general elections. It’s an issue that could portend trouble for candidates like Gunter and Marchant looking to pitch themselves as Trump-aligned contenders heading into 2024 who could very likely win GOP primaries but face a trickier path in a general election.

Yet a number of Republicans in key races have backed Trump in 2024, including Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose (R) and businessman Bernie Moreno in the Ohio Senate race; and West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice (R) and Rep. Alex Mooney (R-W.Va.), who are both running for the GOP nomination to take on Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.).

Daines and Rep. Richard Hudson (R-N.C.), who helms the House GOP campaign arm, have also backed Trump in 2024, a nod to the fact that the former president still holds significant sway over the GOP electorate. 

The nonpartisan election handicapper Cook Political Report rates Rosen’s seat “lean Democrat.”