Democrat Senator Sherrod Brown was brought up for ‘refusing to condemn Trump’s conviction in a new ad’ as Republicans strategize using Donald’s crimes to oust vulnerable Democrats in swing states
Democrats in the Swing State running for office this year are in a tough spot following the deeply divisive conviction of former President Donald Trump.
Ohio Republican Bernie Moreno’s campaign is making a new five-figure ad buy attacking vulnerable Democrat Sherrod Brown for “refusing to condemn the Biden Justice Department’s prosecution of Trump.”
The ad, exclusively obtained by DailyMail.com, is the first to be scrapped as Republicans plan to put wobbly Democrats in critical swing states on the spot over Trump’s historic criminal conviction.
It begins and ends with Brown’s words: “Joe Biden’s politics now aren’t much different from mine.”
“No matter the issue, Sherrod Brown stands with Biden even as he turns the justice system into a weapon to interfere in the presidential election,” it said. “Sherrod Brown continues to refuse to condemn Biden’s politically motivated witch hunt because Sherrod Brown stands with Joe Biden.”
Ohio Republican Bernie Moreno’s campaign is making a new five-figure ad buy, attacking Moreno for ‘refusing to condemn Biden’s Justice Department prosecution of Trump’
Brown faces a tough re-election campaign in increasingly red Ohio. The populist Democrat agrees with his party on some points, but responds tepidly to a jury that found Trump guilty on 34 counts of falsifying company data.
“I am not a lawyer or a judge, but I have said from the beginning that no one is above the law. Ultimately, it is up to the legal system to figure this out and for the American people to decide in November,” the senator said.
Moreno, who has the support of Donald Trump, trails Brown 42.3 to 37.3 percent, according to a RealClearPolitics poll average. Brown won his last two races by six points.
Republicans have rallied political support in light of Trump’s conviction. Lara Trump, co-chair of the RNC, said Sunday that the RNC raised more than $70 million in the first 48 hours after his verdict was read.
Other vulnerable Democrats have either carefully crafted statements about respecting the judicial outcome or remained silent.
A spokesman for Montana Democrat Jon Tester said he “respects the legal process and believes everyone should be treated fairly in court, and voters will have the opportunity to make their voices heard at the ballot box in November.”
Tester is running against Republican Tim Sheehy.
Sen. Jacky Rosen, D-N.M., said in a statement: “Every American, even a former president, is governed by the rule of law and must be held accountable for criminal actions. A jury has made a decision and I respect our justice system and the outcome of this fair and impartial process.”
Democrat Bob Casey of Pennsylvania and Democrat Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin have not spoken on the issue.
Moreno, who has the support of Donald Trump, trails Brown 42.3 to 37.3 percent, according to a RealClearPolitics poll average. Brown won his last two races by six points
Republicans are aggressively trying to regain control of the Senate in November. According to a prediction from FiveThirtyEight, they are ‘somewhat advantaged’ to this end.
The jury of seven men and five women made their decision as the former president faced 34 charges Thursday of falsifying company records. His sentencing date is set for July 11.
It comes after five weeks of dramatic evidence and 22 witnesses questioned on the stand.
It is the first time that a former American president has faced a criminal trial.
The Trump team has vowed to appeal the conviction. He will now face the Appellate Division in Manhattan, and possibly the Court of Appeals, and will remain free on bail while he appeals.
The charges Trump faced each carried a maximum prison sentence of up to four years.
Jurors had the option of convicting Trump of all charges, acquitting him of all charges, or returning a mixed verdict finding him guilty of some charges and not others.
Falsifying company records would typically be a lower-level crime, but his charge was raised to the misdemeanor level because of a second offense: attempting to influence the 2016 election.
The judge could consider the unprecedented nature of the case and choose not to put a former president and current candidate behind bars.