Hispanic Democrats slam Republicans in Jan. 6 campaign ad

The Congressional Hispanic Caucus campaign arm, Bold PAC, on Wednesday released two ads slamming Republicans a year after the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol that left five people dead and delayed the certification of the Electoral College votes from the 2020 presidential election.

The ads, one in English and one in Spanish, contrast with Bold PAC’s usual hyperlocal campaign fare.

“Republicans in Congress helped spread the ‘Big Lie’ and have consistently denied the full scale of violence at the Capitol, comparing the mob’s breaching of the building to a ‘normal tourist visit,’” said Bold PAC Chair Rep. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.) in a statement.

“One year later, they are still hiding the truth about the insurrection, turning their backs on our democracy, and standing with extremists and insurrectionists,” added Gallego.

The 15-second video ads feature a brief narration over footage of the Jan. 6 attack and the funeral procession for Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick, who died of strokes the day after he was hit in the head by a fire extinguisher and sprayed with bear spray during the attack.

“An attack on our democracy. Rioters in the Capitol. Beating police. Killing an officer,” says the narrator.

“And Republican politicians? Silent. National Republicans turned their backs on our country. It’s time for leaders who won’t look the other way,” adds the narrator, as the video switches to footage of GOP congressional leaders.

The new ad campaign showcases a trend in Democratic campaigns, increasingly turning to Jan. 6 and its aftermath as a way to discredit Republican candidates ahead of this year’s midterm elections.

There is some evidence that the strategy may be working.

A USA Today/Suffolk poll released Tuesday showed that Republicans are vulnerable to losing support in the generic congressional ballot.

Support for GOP congressional candidates has dropped to 37 percent, 9 percentage points lower than in November, according to the poll, even as support for Democratic candidates has remained static at 39 percent.

Only two Republicans, Reps. Liz Cheney (Wyo.) and Adam Kinzinger (Ill.), serve on the House committee investigating the riot, and they have been subject to numerous attacks from their own party for their participation.

Kinzinger in October announced his retirement from Congress.

Gallego, an Iraq War Marine veteran who’s been vocal about his disdain for the organizers and perpetrators of the Jan. 6 Capitol attack, on Tuesday called out “obstructionist” Republicans over their role in the year after the attack.

“The problem that we have right now is that we have a very obstructionist Republican Party that should be part of helping us decide how to help democracy instead of trying to cover up for their crimes,” Gallego told CNN.

Bold PAC’s ads, aimed mainly at Hispanic voters, are also an attempt to counteract misinformation and disinformation in Spanish-language media.

Research by Equis Labs, a progressive polling organization focused on Hispanic voters, found that many political social media posts — including QAnon conspiracy posts — that were labeled for inaccuracy in English were not so labeled in their Spanish-language form.

“The best way to fight the Republican disinformation campaign is to uncover the truth about what they knew and how they were involved and to hold them accountable for their actions. This is an important issue for Bold PAC because misinformation campaigns continue to target the Latino community, especially through their use of Spanish-language media,” Gallego said.