Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call
- Dave McCormick, a Senate candidate in Pennsylvania, is running a “Let’s go, Brandon” Super Bowl ad.
- The phrase is popular among conservatives as a coded way to insult President Joe Biden.
- Former President Donald Trump has yet to make an endorsement in the Senate race.
A candidate for US Senate in Pennsylvania intends to air a “Let’s go, Brandon” advertisement during the Super Bowl on Sunday, Fox News first reported.
The ad from Republican candidate Dave McCormick features audio of a crowd chanting “Let’s go, Brandon,” which emerged last year as an anti-Biden chant. As Insider previously reported, the “Let’s go, Brandon” chant is a euphemism for “Fuck Joe Biden.” It emerged after a NASCAR race in October last year.
The ad is expected to air in the Pittsburgh area on NBC platforms, Jess Szymanski, a spokesperson for McCormick’s campaign, told Insider.
In the ad, McCormick, a former hedge fund CEO, highlights issues many Republicans have touted as President Joe Biden’s failures, including inflation, the US withdrawal from Afghanistan, and the border crisis. Biden’s approval rating has plunged during his first year in office.
“The issues we are facing are so much bigger than ‘Brandon,'” McCormick told Fox News, referring to Biden. “The frustration and anger we are feeling toward the failures of our current leadership in Washington is what motivated me to run.”
The 30-second ad likely came at a hefty price. This year, multiple companies paid $7 million for a Super Bowl commercial slot, Fox Business reported. Szymanski, McCormick’s spokesperson, told Insider the ad was “part of McCormick’s 6-figure weekly, statewide ad buys.”
Last year, sitting Pennsylvania Sen. Pat Toomey, who was one of seven GOP senators who voted to convict Trump for his role in the January 6, 2021, Capitol riot, announced his plans to retire after the 2022 midterms.
The race for his seat so far includes McCormick, Carla Sands, the former US ambassador to Denmark during the Trump administration, and Mehmet Oz, a doctor and TV personality who also has ties to the former president.
According to Fox News, McCormick had once been considered for a position in former President Donald Trump’s cabinet, and his wife, Dina Powell McCormick, served as a national security adviser under Trump.
McCormick, who from 2020 until this year was the CEO of Bridgewater Associates, also served as Under Secretary of the Treasury for International Affairs under President George W. Bush.
Former congressional candidate Sean Parnell was running for the seat and had Trump’s endorsement before he dropped out of the race in November.
While he issued his 100th endorsement last week since leaving office, Trump has yet to issue a new endorsement in the Pennsylvania race, according to Reuters. The high-stakes race will be one of the deciding factors in whether Republicans win back the US Senate.
Powered by WPeMatico
