Campaign

Doug Collins bashes Loeffler’s past support for Romney in campaign ad

by Kaelan Deese - 02/07/20 3:22 PM ET

Rep. Doug Collins (R) has launched an attack ad against incumbent Sen. Kelly Loeffler (R) in the Georgia Senate race by going after her past financial support for Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah).

In a 30-second ad posted on Twitter, Collins’s campaign hits Loeffler for donating “nearly $1 million” to Romney when he was a presidential candidate while contributing “NOTHING” to President Trump’s campaign in 2016.

“Loeffler’s big money talks: but it was silent for Donald Trump,” Collins wrote in a tweet accompanying the video.

.@kloeffler stood with Mitt Romney in 2008 and 2012. In primaries and the general. But not a dime for @realDonaldTrump — not even against Hillary Clinton.

Loeffler’s big money talks: but it was silent for Donald Trump. #gapol pic.twitter.com/RDdmNqat5c

— Doug Collins (@CollinsforGA) February 7, 2020

The ad echoed an attack Collins launched earlier this week going after Loeffler’s past financial contributions.

Daily reminder that @kloeffler donated more than 750k to elect Mitt Romney in 2012 and zero dollars to elect @realDonaldTrump in 2016. #gapol https://t.co/gL7afQgrpc

— Doug Collins (@CollinsforGA) February 5, 2020

A spokesman for Loeffler’s campaign pushed back on Collins’s ad, saying, “Desperate, baseless attacks will not distract Senator Loeffler from supporting President Trump’s agenda and fighting for Georgians.”

Collins, a vocal ally of Trump who emerged as a top defender of the president during the House impeachment proceedings, announced last week that he would launch a GOP primary challenge to Loeffler, who was appointed to replace Sen. Johnny Isakson (R-Ga.).

Matt Whitlock, a senior adviser for the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC), also pushed back on Collins’s ad, calling it “ridiculous.” He posted screenshots of past Facebook posts showing Collins supporting Romney’s 2012 presidential bid and saying he would vote for him.

This is such a ridiculous line of attack from you. pic.twitter.com/7y1EMf9m9Y

— Matt Whitlock (@mattdizwhitlock) February 7, 2020

A spokesman for Collins’s campaign responded to Whitlock’s comments by saying Loeffler “only admonished Romney when her support of him became a political liability.”

The NRSC has said it will support Loeffler in the special election this year to fill the remainder of Isakson’s term, which ends in 2022. The Senate GOP campaign arm ripped Collins for entering the Senate race, accusing him of making it more difficult for Republicans to win across Georgia.

Loeffler has recently sought some distance from Romney, who was critical of Trump’s dealings with Ukraine during the House impeachment probe and who became the only GOP senator to break with the party this week to vote to convict Trump of abuse of power.

In late January, after Romney called for more witnesses and documents for the Senate impeachment trial, Loeffler spoke out on Twitter, accusing her GOP colleague of trying to “appease the left by calling witnesses who will slander @realDonaldTrump.”

“It’s time to move on,” added Loeffler, who voted with other Republicans this week to acquit Trump on both articles of impeachment.

After 2 weeks, it’s clear that Democrats have no case for impeachment. Sadly, my colleague @SenatorRomney wants to appease the left by calling witnesses who will slander the @realDonaldTrump during their 15 minutes of fame. The circus is over. It’s time to move on! #gapol

— Senator Kelly Loeffler (@SenatorLoeffler) January 27, 2020

On Friday, the GOP senator further touted the vote to acquit Trump, declaring, “We’re going to win in November and reelect @realDonaldTrump!”

We’ve moved on. We’re focused on results. We’re going to win in November and reelect @realDonaldTrump! pic.twitter.com/EyOICLMORI

— Kelly Loeffler (@kloeffler) February 7, 2020

Updated: 5:35 p.m.