Groups use comments by host on Sotomayor in ads
MIAMI (AP) – Two liberal groups are jumping on the Sonia Sotomayor bandwagon, using disparaging comments radio host Rush Limbaugh made against her to rally Hispanic voters in Florida.
The groups are targeting central Florida Republicans with Spanish-language radio and TV spots demanding they denounce Limbaugh.
The first ads released this week take on U.S. Rep. Adam Putnam, the former House Republican Conference Chairman who is now running for Florida agriculture commissioner and U.S. Rep. John Mica, up for re-election in 2010.
In the ads, an announcer says Sotomayor’s nomination to the U.S. Supreme Court is a proud moment for Hispanics, but that Republican leaders insist on attacking her.
Then comes Limbaugh’s voice saying Sotomayor “doesn’t have any intellectual depth. She’s got a – she’s an angry woman, she’s a bigot. She’s a racist.”
The announcer urges listeners to contact Putnam and Mica and demand they denounce Limbaugh.
Ads for six other Orlando and Tampa area districts are in the works.
The groups said they chose central Florida to start the campaign because of the high number of Hispanic voters, especially Puerto Ricans.
The ads are sponsored by two organizations: Progressive Change Campaign Committee, which is led by staff from the liberal group MoveOn.org, and the nonprofit Presente.org.
Presente, which seeks to mobilize Hispanics online, is the brainchild of the Berkeley, Calif.-based Citizen Engagement Laboratory.