An independent political action committee backed by a coalition of progressive labor unions has launched robocalls into roughly 60,000 households in New Jersey’s 7th district focusing on Rep. Tom Kean, Jr. (R-Westfield) and his missed votes since March 5.
But the robocall, paid for by Battleground Alliance PAC, speaks only to the missed votes and not about the health-related issues that have caused Kean’s absence.
The PAC has promised to spend $50 million this year to help Democrats flip enough seats to win control of the U.S. House of Representatives. Last year, POLITICO reported that Battleground Alliance PAC is connected to “more than 30 progressive and labor organizations, including the Service Employees International Union, Working Families Party, Planned Parenthood Votes, Indivisible and MoveOn.” According to its April quarterly report filed with the Federal Election Commission, the PAC raised $767,788.
Script: “Tom Kean has been missing from Congress for over 100 days. He skipped the vote to end Trump’s war in Iran. He skipped the vote, handed ICE $70 billion. He hasn’t held a town hall or shown his face in the district since winter. A congressman who isn’t there can’t fight for you. Call Tom Kean and ask where he’s been.”
This is the first paid media attacking Kean for his absence. The two-term Republican is facing Democrat Rebecca Bennett in the general election.
“For 100 days, the families of New Jersey’s 7th district have had no one fighting for them in Washington. Tom Kean hasn’t cast a vote since winter; he hasn’t held a town hall, and he hasn’t shown his face in the district he was elected to serve. People here are worried about their jobs, their health care, and whether we’re being dragged into another war, and their congressman is nowhere to be found,” said Andrew Grossman, a spokesman for the PAC. “A congressman who won’t show up can’t fight for you, and we’re going to make sure every household in this district knows exactly how long their seat in Congress has been sitting empty.”