Rep. Patrick Murphy’s (D-Fla.) campaign to unseat Sen. Marco Rubio launched a new digital ad Thursday knocking the Florida Republican for supporting Donald Trump in the general election after dismissing him as a “con man” in the GOP primaries.
{mosads}The minute-long spot splices together past clips of Rubio criticizing the GOP nominee at rallies and in interviews. It also features news anchors questioning how Rubio stands by his criticism while still backing Trump for president.
Murphy’s campaign claims that Rubio’s support for Trump is to help further the senator’s own political aspirations.
“Rubio’s Donald dance would be comical if it didn’t involve handing over our country’s national security to an unhinged bigot,” Murphy campaign manager Josh Wolf said in a statement. “In reality, it is Marco Rubio who is attempting to con Floridians by saying whatever it takes to get re-elected to a job he hates so he can run for President again in 2020.”
Rubio’s campaign pushed back on the ad, saying that Murphy is making attacks to distract from his record.
“Patrick Murphy’s record of accomplishments is so weak that he’s been lying to Florida voters for years about his resume, falsely claimed he runs a small business, and is now trying to cover up his weak record of getting things done,” said spokesman Michael Ahrens.
“Murphy can keep trying to distract from the truth, but Floridians already know that Marco has a strong record of fighting for them and that’s why they’re going to re-elect him in November.”
Murphy and Rubio will likely square off for the swing-state seat that could determine which party controls the Senate next year.
But first, both candidates must advance from their respective primaries on Aug. 30. Murphy faces a heated challenge from liberal firebrand Rep. Alan Grayson. After allegations of domestic abuse emerged from his ex-wife, Grayson faced calls from many Democrats to drop out.
Rubio faces his own primary challenge from wealthy businessman Carlos Beruff. The Trump-aligned candidate has poured millions of dollars of his own money into the campaign, but Rubio is expected to win.
Florida’s Senate race will be one of the most closely watched elections this year. It’s expected to be close, but so far, polls show Rubio leading Murphy despite flagging support there for Trump in his race against Democrat Hillary Clinton.