Democrats Target New Jersey Republican for Stance on Gay Candidates
June 14, 2016
By Simone Pathe
Democrats hope that the words of one New Jersey Republican — contrary to his own party’s support for gay candidates — will come back to hurt him in the general election.
House Majority PAC, a super PAC that works to elect Democrats to the House, goes on cable this week in New Jersey’s 5th District with an approximately $80,000 ad attacking Rep. Scott Garrett.
This is HMP’s first general election ad of the year.
Garrett has refused to pay dues to the National Republican Congressional Campaign Committee because, he said, the campaign committee recruited gay candidates and supported them in primaries. He told this to a group of his fellow Republicans on the Financial Services Committee last summer.
In the months since Garrett’s comments, much of his fundraising from the financial services industry has dried up .
The House Majority PAC, titled “Quotes,”features critiques of Garrett from New Jersey newspaper editorials.
The ad lets the newspapers slam Garrett for his position on gays, and then makes the argument that Garrett, who represents a district close to New York City, would hurt the state’s relationship with business. Get Roll Call in your inbox
“Scott Garrett. He’s bad for business and wrong for New Jersey,” the ad says.
Democrat Josh Gottheimer, a former speechwriter for President Bill Clinton, is challenging Garrett in November. Gottheimer outraised Garrett during the first quarter of 2016 by about $350,000.