The National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) on Thursday cancelled about $500,000 in advertising it had reserved in its quest to help elect 1st Congressional District GOP candidate Darren White.
That doesn’t mean White isn’t getting any help from outside groups. Freedom’s Watch has spent just under $500,000 on television ads attacking White’s Democratic opponent, Martin Heinrich. And the NRCC still plans to spend more than $200,000 on the race. But the move by the NRCC is undoubtedly a blow to a candidate who has trailed Heinrich slightly in recent polls of the race.
The NRCC has had trouble keeping up with its Democratic counterpart, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC), in fundraising. The GOP group has scaled back ad buys in other races as well and recently took out an $8 million loan to spend in the final weeks of the election.
The DCCC, meanwhile, has already spent hundreds of thousands of dollars airing ads to help Heinrich and has more time reserved.
Heinrich’s campaign went on the offensive on Thursday in a news release announcing the NRCC’s cancellation. The release states that the scaling back of the NRCC’s ad buy indicates that “George W. Bush’s favorite sheriff Darren White is having trouble relying on his good friends in
“It’s actually kind of sad,” Heinrich spokesman Jason Burke said. “After the hundreds of thousands of dollars Darren raised as chairman of George Bush’s re-election campaign, you’d think his buddy Bush would help bailout his failed campaign.”
In response, White spokesman Stephen Schatz said the GOP candidate’s campaign is in “a strong position financially” and has booked television time through Election Day.
“We always knew we were going to be outspent in this race, and we budgeted and planned appropriately,” he said. “We are confident that we will have the resources necessary to win this race.”