Rep. Marcy Kaptur, a vulnerable Ohio Democrat, tried to distance herself from President Joe Biden in a recent campaign ad despite being a longtime supporter of the president and voting with him 100 percent of the time.
In the ad, the congresswoman — one of the more vulnerable Democrats in this year’s midterm elections as her race is considered a “toss-up” — tried to distance herself from Biden and tout her work with her state’s Republican senator.
The campaign ad stated, “Joe Biden’s letting Ohio solar manufacturers be undercut by China” but the congresswoman is “fighting back” by “working with Republican Rob Portman.”
President Joe Biden hugs Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D-Ohio) while Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb stands near as Biden arrives at Cleveland Hopkins International Airport, Thursday, February 17, 2022, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
“But Marcy fights for every Ohio job. Marcy Kaptur: she doesn’t work for Joe Biden. She works for you,” the ad stated, looking to distance Kaptur from Biden.
However, the New York Times noted that the campaign ad came as a “relative surprise“ since she has long supported the president.
In fact, the Kaptur even appeared with him last month when he stepped off of Air Force One at Cleveland Hopkins International Airport. The two were pictured at the airport laughing, and Biden appeared to kiss her hand:
President Joe Biden is greeted by (L-R) Reps. Shontel Brown and Marcy Kaptur, Senator Sherrod Brown, and Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb, on arrival at Cleveland Hopkins International Airport in Cleveland, Ohio, July 6, 2022. (SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images)
National Republican Congressional Committee Spokeswoman Courtney Parella responded to the ad by publishing a clip of Kaptur campaigning for Biden during the 2020 presidential election in Ohio, where she declared, “It will be my honor to not just vote for Joe Biden but to work for him.”
.@Marcy_Kaptur: "It will be my honor to not just vote for Joe Biden but to work for him." https://t.co/kxQyMQVKLj pic.twitter.com/NjP1vFhlS1
— Courtney Parella (@CourtneyParella) August 19, 2022
In addition to her long-standing support for Biden, Kaptur has never missed a vote for the president. FiveThirtyEight, which keeps track of how often House members vote for or against the president, found that Kaptur voted with Biden 100 percent of the time.
In an additional statement, Parella hammered Kaptur for trying to ignore her past record.
“No one believes Marcy Kaptur is standing up to Joe Biden,” Parella stated. “Kaptur has voted for Biden’s agenda 100% of the time, and her outright lies show she’s desperate to distance herself from a toxic president and her own failed record for Ohioans.”
Republicans are aiming to unseat Kaptur with Donald Trump-backed Republican challenger J.R. Majewski. Republicans in the House are looking for a net gain of at least five seats, which would win them back the majority and unseat Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) from her Speakership.
J.R. Majewski, the Ohio Republican who hopes to win Marcy Kaptur’s House seat. (courtesy J.R. Majewski)
Vulnerable Ohio Democrat Rep. Marcy Kaptur has released campaign ads claiming to be pro-law enforcement, despite her voting record to the contrary and being supported by groups that want to defund the police. https://t.co/ub1v3KE0dK
— Breitbart News (@BreitbartNews) August 1, 2022
Along with generic ballot polls showing the Republicans have a good chance at taking back the majority, Breitbart News has chronicled numerous polls that show the battlefield has expanded to more districts than in years prior and, in some cases, even to typically safe seats that Biden carried in the last presidential election by between 11 and 15 points.
In 2018, the Democrats took the House from the Republicans. In 2020, after striving to reclaim it, the Republicans left the Democrats with the slimmest majority in modern history and gave themselves the upper hand in the midterms.
For Republicans, winning the majority will require a net gain of only five seats in November, and much is on the line in both the House and the Senate. Republicans winning either one could mean the Democrats and Biden will have more difficulty passing their agenda items before the next presidential election.
According to analysts from multiple organizations and news outlets, Republicans are currently projected to win back the majority in the House with anywhere between two and 35 seats while only needing to net five seats.
Jacob Bliss is a reporter for Breitbart News. Write to him at jbliss@breitbart.com or follow him on Twitter @JacobMBliss.
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