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McSally, Sinema attack ads flying in Arizona Senate race as ad money flows

Posted at 9:34 PM, Oct 09, 2018
and last updated 2018-10-10 18:12:33-04

With early voting set to begin soon, Arizona's contested Senate race with national implications is seeing ads from supporters of both major candidates bashing the opposition.

One mailing that recently went to voters has echoes of a famous Lyndon Johnson ad from 1964 called "Daisy." The ad features a little girl pulling petals off of a flower, which is quickly replaced by video of a nuclear explosion. 

In the mailing against Kyrsten Sinema, the flyer features a hologram with two images: one of the Phoenix area, the other of a nuclear fireball. The suggestion is that the Phoenix area could be the target of a nuclear attack should voters pick Sinema.

"It's consistent with what we've seen from Congresswoman McSally and the special interest backers who are supporting her campaign," said Helen Hare, a spokeswoman for the Sinema campaign. "They don't want to talk about McSally's record, so instead they're attacking Kyrsten in this very false way."

RELATED: Poll shows McSally widening lead over Sinema

The ad comes from the dark money group DefendArizona, which has already spent millions of dollars on TV ads attacking the Sinema campaign.

Barrett Marson, a political consultant and spokesperson for DefendArizona, said it was important for the group to point out Sinema's "liberal policies from the past," including a claim that she was in favor of closing Luke Air Force Base.

The Sinema campaign countered that she supports the base and is happy to talk about her record on national security. 

A spokesperson for the McSally campaign did not return a request for comment on the mailer.

Voters can expect more of the same between now and November 6, as on Tuesday the largest Republican SuperPAC announced it was spending $1.7 million on new ad buys.