Thread: Scott Walker super PAC announces $7 million Iowa ad buy

Scott Walker super PAC announces $7 million Iowa ad buy

Associated Press

A super PAC supporting Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, shown speaking during a town hall meeting July 17 in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, is planning a nearly $7 million ad buy in the state. Success in Iowa is viewed as crucial to Walker’s presidential aspirations.

By Mary Spicuzza and Patrick Marley of the Journal Sentinel
Updated: 5:03 p.m.

The Scott Walker File


Special Section: Everything you need to know about Scott Walker and his place in the 2016 presidential race

Madison— A super PAC aimed at boosting Gov. Scott Walker's presidential bid is set to spend nearly $7 million on an Iowa ad blitz, just as Walker and nine of his GOP rivals prepare for their first debate Thursday.

Walker has a premier spot on the stage and will stand next to real estate mogul Donald Trump, who has led recent polls and has spent some of his time trashing Walker and several of his other opponents. Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush — another frequent target for Trump — is to stand on Trump's other side in the debate.

Though Walker could take some incoming fire, he is not expected to return in kind. He has limited his criticisms of other candidates and said he will focus on telling voters what he stands for.

The debate will air at 8 p.m. central time on Fox News, the forum's sponsor.

Walker will start his day Thursday by kicking off the Wisconsin State Fair. From there, he will head to Cleveland for the debate. He is also making a campaign stop at a Cleveland restaurant on Friday, underscoring the importance of Ohio, a bellwether state for presidential elections.

Walker and his backers have also viewed Iowa — host of the first-in-the-nation presidential caucus — as essential to his path to his party's nomination. The latest example of that is the ad buy by Unintimidated PAC, the super PAC backing his run.

An official with Unintimidated PAC confirmed Wednesday that its ads are scheduled to begin airing Sept. 8 in Iowa. The TV ads will air in markets that include Des Moines, Ames, Cedar Rapids, Waterloo, Iowa City and Dubuque. The $6.8 million buy also includes cable TV and statewide radio ads, the official said.

The group also is planning major ad buys in New Hampshire, South Carolina and Nevada, which will likely occur in the next few weeks, the official said.

Those states hold the second, third and fourth nominating contests.

"Governor Scott Walker is the only candidate who has fought for big, bold reforms to our biggest challenges and actually won those fights," Brad Dayspring, a senior adviser for the super PAC, told CNN. "This is the first phase of telling his story — a conservative governor from a blue state who has challenged the status quo, fought the entrenched special interests and enacted conservative reforms to reform government from the bottom up — to voters in early states who are looking for a fighter who does more than make promises."

Unintimidated reported raising nearly $20 million since it was formed in April, with half that amount coming from two people, a report filed Friday revealed.

Unintimidated PAC received about $5 million each from the Ricketts family, which owns the Chicago Cubs, and Diane Hendricks, the billionaire owner of a Beloit company who has urged Walker to take on unions.

Also on Wednesday, Walker announced the first 65 members of his campaign's Iowa leadership team. It includes more than one-third of the Republicans in the state Senate, six state representatives and others "who are recognized as effective, positive leaders in their communities and throughout Iowa," Walker said in a statement.

Thursday's debate will feature 10 of the 17 major Republican candidates. Polling determined who was allowed to participate.

Those with the best numbers — Trump, Bush and Walker — are center stage.

Also appearing are former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson, Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas, Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida, Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and Ohio Gov. John Kasich.

Those who didn't make the cut are former Texas Gov. Rick Perry, former Sen. Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania, Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal, former Hewlett-Packard CEO Carly Fiorina, Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, former New York Gov. George Pataki and former Virginia Gov. Jim Gilmore.

Those seven candidates are invited to appear at a separate debate, which airs at 4 p.m. central time on Fox News.

Fourteen of the 17 candidates appeared Monday at a forum in New Hampshire that gave some clues to what the candidates would highlight in Thursday's debate.

In Monday's forum, the candidates spent less than 10 minutes each answering a range of questions in one-on-one sessions with moderator Jack Heath. The candidates largely avoided directly criticizing one another in those exchanges.

Trump, Huckabee and Gilmore did not participate in Monday's event.

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