Linda McMahon saturated the airwaves of Connecticut Wednesday with a new radio ad that seeks to brand Chris Murphy as beholden to special interests.
The minute-long spot wonders why the three-term House Democrat sponsored what McMahon’s campaign characterized as an obscure amendment to the Homeowners Defense Act of 2007 with little benefit for Murphy’s Connecticut constituents.
The ad states that Murphy received $17,000 in political contributions from the Property Casualty Insurers Association of America, which has a lobby shop in Washington, D.C. and was angling for the very language that Murphy was able to include in the bill.
The amendment requires states to demonstrate that they have implemented internationally recognized building codes to ensure that new homes stand up to natural disasters such as earthquakes, floods and hurricane before states can qualify for federal disaster loans.
McMahon’s campaign contends that the mandate adds 1.5 to 4.5 percent onto construction costs and was way off the radar of Murphy’s constituents.
A campaign spokesman for Murphy, who was the lone sponsor of the amendment that passed by a voice vote, called McMahon’s claims ridiculous.
“This is just one more absurd, desperate, and misleading attack from Linda McMahon on Chris’s strong record of fighting for jobs and middle class families,” Eli Zupnick, of the Murphy campaign, told Hearst Connecticut Newspapers. “Chris will never stop listening to local companies and workers and working to solve problems and fight for Connecticut priorities.”
Murphy’s aides say that the amendment had the support of U.S. Rep. John Larson, D-Conn., as well as property insurance companies, taxpayer groups and environmentalists.