Republican Senate candidate Scott Milne sharply criticized Sen. Patrick Leahy on Thursday as plagued by a “pernicious” political virus in his first campaign ad of the season.
“Career politician Patrick Leahy has caught the bug,” begins the spot, which is running on the internet. In an apparent reference to the zika virus, a disease that poses serious health risks to fetuses, the ad goes on to say: “The DiCa virus from spending too many decades in D.C.”
The 30-second ad then spotlights the millions in special interest dollars and free travel Leahy has accepted over the course of his 42 years in office before declaring “the only known cure for this pernicious disease is to extract the sufferer from D.C.”
“Leahy suffers from an advanced case of an ailment that attacks all too many professional politicians,” Milne said in a statement announcing the ad. “It’s why I support term limits and true campaign finance reform. Voters deserve a fresh voice who has not been infected by the ways of Washington.”
Milne has not yet reported any spending to the Federal Communications Commision to put the internet ads up on television. Campaign manager Elise Milne would not say if the ad would be aired in local media markets or be circulated only online.
“We are not sharing our strategy with regard to spending and placement, and production costs will be reflected in the next campaign finance filing,” she said in an email.
The Republican candidate’s company, Milne Travel, bought nearly $20,000 of ad time in August on WCAX. The ads prominently featured the candidate, who spoke of the importance of community service.
In August, Milne told VTDigger that he did not expect to run any political ads this season.
“We are running a low-budget campaign,” Milne said at the time. “If people step up and give money then we will run ads. If not, that will be less likely.”
Milne had brought in roughly $22,000 for his campaign as of the end of July, the last reporting deadline. Another report is due Oct. 27.
Leahy released his first campaign spots in September, which focused on past legislative accomplishments. His campaign has spent tens of thousands of dollars putting them on the airwaves, according to FCC reports.
