Even though Nevada hasn't held its primary yet, incumbent Republican Sen. Dean Heller is already presuming Jacky Rosen will be his opponent, and isn't wasting time leveling attacks.
The ad "Priorities" uses footage from Heller's April 20th, 2018 campaign rally, in which he thanked military veterans in attendance for their service, then mocked Rosen for being in Hollywood at the same time, attending a fundraiser with Jane Fonda. But Heller doesn't use the actress' name, he calls her "Hanoi Jane."
"My opponent right now is breaking bread with Hanoi Jane, Heller says on the stump, "This is the same Hanoi Jane that said it was understandable that our military men were being tortured in Vietnam."
As Heller speaks, we see a grainy photo of Rosen at the Hollywood fundraiser. You can be sure Heller's media consultants were gnashing their teeth because their campaign tracker couldn't get a shot of Rosen and Fonda together. Instead, the ad settles for a juxtaposition of a contemporary shot of Rosen followed by the vintage photo of Fonda in front of North Vietnam's anti-aircraft weapons.
Heller's political consultants clearly believe either enough voters do remember what she did, considering that the midterm electorate will likely skew older than the nation as a whole, or that any association with a Hollywood liberal is sufficiently damning. That may explain why towards the end of the ad, Heller charges Rosen with choosing "Hollywood" over the "300,000 veterans" in Nevada.
The ad "Priorities" uses footage from Heller's April 20th, 2018 campaign rally, in which he thanked military veterans in attendance for their service, then mocked Rosen for being in Hollywood at the same time, attending a fundraiser with Jane Fonda. But Heller doesn't use the actress' name, he calls her "Hanoi Jane."
Heller Resurrects Derisive Nickname for Jane Fonda
Heller is resurrecting the derisive nickname hung on Fonda during the Vietnam War, when she was an anti-war activist and was photographed with communist North Vietnamese soldiers."My opponent right now is breaking bread with Hanoi Jane, Heller says on the stump, "This is the same Hanoi Jane that said it was understandable that our military men were being tortured in Vietnam."
As Heller speaks, we see a grainy photo of Rosen at the Hollywood fundraiser. You can be sure Heller's media consultants were gnashing their teeth because their campaign tracker couldn't get a shot of Rosen and Fonda together. Instead, the ad settles for a juxtaposition of a contemporary shot of Rosen followed by the vintage photo of Fonda in front of North Vietnam's anti-aircraft weapons.
Dean Heller Says Jacky Rosen Chose Hollywood Over Veterans
The question for Heller is: how many voters still care about what Jane Fonda did more than 40 years ago, something that she has apologized for on several occasions and did not, in the end, derail her acting career. Moreover, many voters weren't even born when that happened.Heller's political consultants clearly believe either enough voters do remember what she did, considering that the midterm electorate will likely skew older than the nation as a whole, or that any association with a Hollywood liberal is sufficiently damning. That may explain why towards the end of the ad, Heller charges Rosen with choosing "Hollywood" over the "300,000 veterans" in Nevada.