WASHINGTON (AP) — The Democratic National Committee
is launching an ad campaign in politically key states aimed at rallying the
public behind President Barack Obama's new jobs plan and pressuring a divided
Congress to act.
The television ads show portions of Obama's speech
to Congress last week promoting the $447 billion package of tax cuts and new
spending. They urge viewers to "Read it. Fight for it. ... Pass the
President's Jobs Plan."
The spots were to begin airing Monday and are the
first round in an effort that will last several weeks, said DNC spokesman Brad
Woodhouse.
"The president has a plan to create jobs and
help middle-class Americans get ahead and this effort is intended to
communicate that plan to the American people and for the American people to
communicate their support for his plan to their representatives in
Washington," Woodhouse said.
The DNC push comes as Obama himself is embarking on
a high-profile sales job to boost support for his plan as his re-election
campaign gets under way with the economy stalled and unemployment stuck at 9.1
percent.
The president was formally sending the jobs bill to
Capitol Hill on Monday and holding an event in the Rose Garden to call on
lawmakers to swiftly back it. On Tuesday he'll pitch the plan in Ohio, home
state of House Speaker John Boehner, and on Wednesday in North Carolina.
Obama also promoted the plan in an interview with
NBC's Brian Williams aired Monday on the "Today" show. He said
independent economists "are saying ... this buys us insurance against a
double-dip recession. And it almost certainly helps the economy grow and will
put more people back to work, and that's what the American people want right
now."
Republicans dismissed the DNC effort.
"After failing to create a single job last
month, Democrats are going to need a lot more than TV ads to convince voters to
support more of the same ineffective policies that have failed to put our
country back to work," said Republican National Committee spokesman Ryan
Mahoney
The centerpiece of the plan cuts payroll taxes that
pay for Social Security, giving a tax break to workers and businesses. There's
also new spending for teachers and school construction, and an extension of
jobless benefits, among other elements. Republican lawmakers who control the
House seem more open to the tax cuts than the new spending.
The DNC ads don't target any specific lawmakers, or
make any reference to the looming 2012 presidential campaign. But they're
airing in key markets in some of the most critical swing and early voting
states: Denver; Tampa and Orlando, Fla.; Des Moines, Iowa; Las Vegas;
Manchester, N.H.; Raleigh and Charlotte, N.C.; Columbus and Cleveland, Ohio;
and Norfolk, Richmond and Roanoke, Va.; as well as Washington, D.C.
The 30-second spots open with footage of Obama
exhorting Congress during his speech to a joint session last Thursday, telling
lawmakers: "The next election is 14 months away. And the people who sent
us here, the people who hired us to work for them, they don't have the luxury
of waiting 14 months." As dramatic music plays, lettering on the screen
urges viewers to read the jobs plan and fight for it. There are two slightly
different versions, one with more shots of Obama speaking and the other with a
few bullet points detailing the plan, and they will alternate.
At the same time the DNC is rolling out ads to
Internet platforms including Facebook, Hulu, and other sites.
Copyright
2011 The Associated Press.
