DCCC

The DCCC is on the air with a radio ad attacking U.S. Rep. Leonard Lance, who has been in Congress about a month.

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee will begin running a radio advertisement today attacking newly-elected U.S. Rep. Leonard Lance (R-Clinton) for voting against President Obama's $89 billion economic stimulus plan.  The DCCC did not disclose how much they are spending on the Lane ads, but Democratic party sources said it was not an expensive media buy.

Lance easily held the 7th district House seat last November (51%-42%) despite substantial financial help from the DCCC for Democrat Linda Stender, a four-term Assemblywoman. 

-- Calls on Stender to State Her Position On Partial-Birth Abortion; Parental Notification --

GREEN BROOK, NJ - Seventh District congressional candidate Leonard Lance today denounced the latest negative television advertisement benefiting his opponent Linda Stender. 

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee is up with its first television advertisement targeting Republican Leonard Lance, a 30-second spot tying the Flemington state Senator to Trenton.

The ad began running on cable stations in the 7th Congressional District last week, with a media buy totaling about $116,000.

“Watch Leonard Lance do the old Trenton dance,” an announcer says. “Dancing to the tune of big oil, pocketing thousands in campaign cash. Lance has those Trenton moves, voting against property tax relief for us but voting himself a 40 percent pay raise, sponsoring a state budget that gave us nearly $3 billion in new debt that paved the way for higher taxes.

“A new Lance dance in D.C.?” the ad concludes. “No thanks.”

Lance is competing against state Assemblywoman Linda Stender (D-Fanwood) for the seat of retiring U.S. Rep. Michael Ferguson (R-New Providence). Democrats have identified the race as a pickup opportunity, with the DCCC reserving about $1.8 million in air time in the district. The committee has already taken Lance to task in mail pieces distributed to residents in the district.

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee spent an additional $43,000 last week in support of state Sen. John Adler's (D-Cherry Hill) 3rd Congressional District bid, bringing their total expenditures in the race to $65,000.

That's less than the $93,000 in independent expenditures made this cycle in the 7th district for Linda Stender (D-Fanwood).

The Republican Congressional Campaign Committee has not made any independent expenditures in the state.

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee is continuing its general election advertising and mail effort, this weekend reporting expenditures in key districts in New Jersey, Illinois, Ohio, Virginia, Alaska and Pennsylvania.

The committee is spending about $13,000 on mailings in New Jersey’s 7th Congressional District, where state Assemblywoman Linda Stender (D-Union) is taking on state Sen. Leonard Lance (R-Hunterdon). The committee’s investment in the district now totals just short of $40,000.

The new investments, reported Saturday, provide a window into the offense-minded posture congressional Democrats are taking this cycle. Of the six districts where the DCCC has announced new investments, only one is currently held by a Democrat.

Stender and Lance are competing for the seat of U.S. Rep. Mike Ferguson (R-Warren), who is retiring after four terms.

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee has listed New Jersey’s third and seventh congressional districts in its top pickup prospects for 2008.

The DCCC released its “Red to Blue” list today, which included both of the district’s Democratic congressional candidates: state Sen. John Adler and Assemblywoman Linda Stender.

Looking to build upon her success from 2006, Linda Stender announced today that her campaign raised over $615,000. This fundraising success surpassed their goal by a large margin and is helping the Stender campaign get off to a great start in the fight to turn New Jersey’s 7th Congressional District seat blue.