The super PAC supporting Republican Herschel Walker’s Senate campaign is airing a new television advertisement showing police bodycam footage of the wife of Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-GA) after an alleged violent altercation.
The super PAC, 34N22, is spending $1.5 million to air the spot in the Atlanta media market over a two-week period, part of an effort to put Warnock on the defensive and steady Walker’s campaign. The Republican has been reeling since early last week amid allegations reported by the Daily Beast that he paid for an ex-girlfriend’s abortion.
Walker, a staunch opponent of abortion, issued vigorous denials and claimed not to know the woman, prompting new revelations that she is apparently the mother of one of his four children.
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So 34N22 shelved planned ads on inflation and rising crime in favor of hits on Warnock’s character, hoping, essentially, that it muddies the water for crucial swing voters between the two — and rescues Walker. In other words, if both Walker and Warnock are equally unsavory, the voters in play might ultimately make their choice based on kitchen table issues.
“Warnock ran over his wife with his car, refused to pay child support, and neglected the terms of his divorce — all while refusing to take any responsibility whatsoever,” 34N22 spokesman Stephen Lawson said in a statement shared with the Washington Examiner. “He continues to throw stones at glass houses, and his blatant hypocrisy will now be on full display for Georgia voters.”
The 30-second spot, “Good Actor,” is publicly available police bodycam footage of Warnock’s ex-wife in tears and visibly shaken, accusing him of attempting to run her over with his car. Warnock denies the allegations.
The incident, which occurred before Warnock was elected to the Senate in a special election decided in a Jan. 5, 2021, runoff, was used as an attack on him and reported on by some media outlets during that campaign. It did not have an impact.
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But with so much focus on Walker’s personal life in the closing weeks of the fall campaign, some Republican strategists are hopeful the topic moves the needle. They believe it might, given Warnock’s political vulnerability due to President Joe Biden’s low approval ratings plus voters’ anxiety about the economy and public safety.
