A pro-Chris Christie group is about to release the first hard-hitting political ad taking President Obama to task over the Paris terrorist attacks, saying he and “second mate” Hillary Rodham Clinton have botched the fight against the Islamic State.
America Leads, a pro-Christie super political action committee, took footage of Mr. Obama in an ABC interview last week saying just hours before the attack that the Islamic State had been “contained,” and then used video of Mrs. Clinton saying shortly after the attack the war “cannot be an American fight.”
The ad, slated to begin running Thursday in New Hampshire, then cuts to footage of Mr. Christie on the campaign trail leveling sharp criticism against the two Democrats, as images of fighters from the Islamic State, also known by the acronym ISIS, flash on the screen.
“America is tried of weakness in the Oval Office. We better not turn it over to his second mate Hillary Clinton,” Mr. Christie says in the video. “We have to stop worrying about being loved and start caring about being respected again. We need to have strength and authority back in the Oval Office. That is what America needs right now.”
He’s one of several governors hoping to break out from the pack of GOP candidates by claiming he has the experience to formulate a better strategy to fight the Islamic State.
Ohio Gov. John Kasich and former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush both released plans this week calling for stiffer resolve in American leaders.
Mr. Kasich’s campaign points to his 18 years on the House Armed Services Committee as relevant experience at a time of international crisis, but Mr. Christie’s backers say he has the rest of the field trumped because he was a federal prosecutor in the years after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorists attacks.
Mr. Christie’s allies remain optimistic about his chances in the crowded GOP field, saying his favorable ratings have improved dramatically in recent months, leaving him well-positioned for a post-Thanksgiving push to win over voters just tuning in.
The 30-second spot will be the seventh advertisement that America Leads has aired in New Hampshire on behalf of Mr. Christie, who is hoping a strong showing in the state’s first-in-the-nation primary can act as a springboard to the GOP presidential nomination.
The group plans to continue to ramp up its presence on the airwaves and has pre-booked nearly $7 million in television ads in the Boston and New Hampshire media markets.
• Seth McLaughlin can be reached at smclaughlin@washingtontimes.com.
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