A little over a month after narrowly winning a three-way primary to earn the GOP nomination in late August, lawyer Tom Rooney is up with the first ad of his general election campaign to knock off freshman Rep. Tim Mahoney (D).

Republicans are excited about their chances of winning back the conservative-leaning 16th district this fall after they lost the seat in 2006 in the wake of a scandal that involved former Rep. Mark Foley (R) and allegations of inappropriate behavior with House pages.

Rooney is a former judge advocate general and scion of the famed Pittsburgh Steelers family, and though he’s relatively inexperienced, GOP operatives believe his outsider status will benefit them as they try to knock off Mahoney. Rooney plays up his outside-the-Beltway credentials in his first ad.

“Washington has to change,” Rooney says in the 30-second commercial. “I’m not a professional politician, but as a fiscal conservative I’ll fight against wasteful spending and work to lower taxes. I support offshore drilling and a balanced energy plan. I’m Tom Rooney, and I approve this message because Washington should work for us.”