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Democratic Group Hits Roy Blunt for Out-of-State Resort Trips

$900K investment in Missouri continues attacks on Blunt's lobbyist ties

Democrats are continuing to hammer Missouri Sen. Roy Blunt for benefitting from ties to lobbyists. (Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call)
Democrats are continuing to hammer Missouri Sen. Roy Blunt for benefitting from ties to lobbyists. (Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call)

A Democratic political action committee is making a new $900,000 investment in the Missouri Senate race, which includes its third ad attacking Sen. Roy Blunt for his ties to lobbyists. 

The ad from End Citizens United PAC, shared exclusively with Roll Call, adds a new layer to accusations that the first-term Republican senator is too cozy with lobbyists in Washington.

“We already know Roy Blunt’s wife and three of his children are all lobbyists. The pay raises … the D.C. mansion … turns out, there’s more,” the narrators says.

“For years, Blunt has been spending weekends at this South Carolina beach resort,” the ad continues. It shows footage of newspaper clips side-by-side with lavish-looking hotel accommodations. The ad alleges that Blunt has spent nearly half a million dollars at the resort, “paid for by lobbyists and special interests.”

The spot will run on TV and digital platforms in the St. Louis and Kansas City markets through Oct. 25.

[Senate Rating Change: Blunt on the Bubble in Missouri]

End Citizens United began going after Blunt’s lobbyist ties in September. Its first spot contrasted Blunt’s family lobbying connections with Democratic nominee Jason Kander’s military service. A second ad continued that theme, calling Blunt “the worst of Washington.”

Democrats generally view Blunt’s lobbyist connections as their most effective target in trying to paint the lawmaker as a Washington insider. They’ve touted Kander, Missouri’s secretary of state, as an outsider with military experience who’d bring change to Washington.

Meanwhile, Republicans have been trying to tie Kander to Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton, who’s expected to lose the state to Donald Trump. Democrats have so far mostly avoided tying Blunt to Trump.

Like many elected officials in his party, Blunt condemned Trump’s 2005 remarks about sexually assaulting women this weekend. But like most elected Republicans from the Show Me State, he did not renounce his support for the GOP presidential nominee. 

The Rothenberg & Gonzales Political Report/Roll Call rates the Missouri Senate race as Tilts Republican.

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