Larry Hogan highlights Jan. 6 ‘horror’ in new ad

Former Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan (R) highlighted the “horror” of the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol, and his own response, in an ad released Tuesday as part of his campaign for the U.S. Senate.

“On January 6, as we watched in horror, Hogan didn’t just talk about defending democracy, he did something. Sending in the Maryland National Guard to protect the Capitol,” the narrator says in the TV ad, titled “Never Backs Down.”

“That’s the same Larry Hogan. Tough. Independent. Never backs down,” the narrator continues.

The one-minute ad shows footage from the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, along with a news clip that says Hogan sent in 500 Maryland National Guard troops and 200 state troopers to assist in defending the Capitol that day.

Hogan has been one of the most notable critics of former President Trump. He has said he will not be voting for Trump in November, and he did not attend the Republican National Convention last month as he hopes to win the deep-blue state of Maryland against Democrat Angela Alsobrooks.

The ad describes Hogan as an “early critic of Donald Trump” as news clips appear on the screen painting the former governor as the “face” of the “anti-Trump GOP” and as the “un-Trump Republican”.  The narrator also said Hogan is “one of the few Republicans who never caved.”

In the days following the Jan. 6 insurrection at the Capitol, Hogan said he was puzzled by the delay in approval for Maryland National Guard assistance. He told CNN at the time that the Trump administration did not grant permission for the Maryland National Guard to enter D.C. for “quite some time” that day despite the troops mobilizing quickly.

The Washington Post reported that the new ad is part of an $8 million blitz that Hogan has reserved for the fall election season. The Hogan campaign confirmed the reporting to The Hill.

A recent survey found the Maryland Senate race deadlocked, with Alsobrooks and Hogan tied at 46 percent support each. The state is still likely to vote for Vice President Harris, who leads Trump in the same poll by more than 30 points.