Major GOP donor produces anti-Luther Strange ad in Senate race
A political committee connected to a big-time Alabama GOP donor will roll out an online and TV ad this week attacking Luther Strange in the final weeks of the primary race for the seat he now occupies. First reported by POLITICO, the Stan Pate-backed Swamp Drainers PAC produced an ad calling into question Strange’s appointment to the seat by former Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley, who resigned amid controversy in April. The 17-second spot asserts then-Alabama Attorney General Strange was appointed by Bentley in exchange for his office dropping an investigation into the scandal-plagued governor. “Vote No! To Shady Big Luther Strange,” the ad reads. The Tuscaloosa real estate developer, announced his political committee at the end of June and made clear he would use it against Strange, who is running in a special election to keep his senate seat. Pate did not say how much money the committee plans to spend on the ads, which will begin airing this week. Strange is running in a crowded special Republican Primary for the seat, with his main competition coming from former Alabama Supreme Court Justice Roy Moore and CD 5 U.S. Rep. Mo Brooks. The primary election is set for Aug. 15. A primary runoff, if necessary, will be Sept. 26 and the general election is scheduled for Dec. 12. The winner of the general election will serve out the remainder of former U.S. Sen. Jeff Sessions’ term, which runs through Jan. 2021.
Anti-Luther Strange GOP donor begins ad campaign
A political committee connected to a big-time Alabama GOP donor will roll out an online and TV ad this week attacking Luther Strange in the final weeks of the primary race for the seat he currently occupies. First reported by POLITICO, the Stan Pate-backed Swamp Drainers PAC has produced an ad calling into question Strange’s appointment to the seat by former Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley, who resigned amid controversy in April. The 17-second spot asserts then-Alabama Attorney General Strange was appointed by Bentley in exchange for his office dropping an investigation into the scandal-plagued governor. “Vote No! To Shady Big Luther Strange,” the ad reads. The Tuscaloosa real estate developer, announced his political committee at the end of June and made clear he would use it against Strange, who is running in a special election to keep his senate seat. Pate did not say how much money the committee plans to spend on the ads, which will begin airing this week. Strange is running in a crowded special Republican Primary for the seat, with his main competition coming from former Alabama Supreme Court Justice Roy Moore and CD 5 U.S. Rep. Mo Brooks. The primary election is set for Aug. 15. A primary runoff, if necessary, will be Sept. 26 and the general election is scheduled for Dec. 12. The winner of the general election will serve out the remainder of former U.S. Sen. Jeff Sessions’ term, which runs through Jan. 2021.
Alabama donor Stan Pate forms anti-Luther Strange PAC
Tuscaloosa-Republican Stan Pate is making it crystal clear: he does not want to see interim U.S. Sen. Luther Strange back in the United States Senate. On Wednesday the outspoken real estate developer registered the Swamp Drainers Foundation, a PAC, that according to Politico, he intends to use against Strange in the coming months. Strange, who from 2011 to February 2017 had served as Alabama’s attorney general until former-Gov. Robert Bentley appointed him to the U.S. Senate, faces his first test of confidence with his constituents when they decide whether or not they want to give him another chance in the Senate in the Aug. 15 GOP primary. If Pate’s PAC has anything to do with it, Strange won’t be headed back to Washington in 2018. Pate’s decision to form the PAC, if anything, should not be surprising. He has long spoken-out against Strange and has a history of putting his money where his mouth is. Over the years, the 52-year-old self-made millionaire has spent millions on political campaigns.
Alabama real estate mogul Stan Pate spearheads international anti-Trump effort
Alabama real estate mogul and millionaire Stan Pate has long made waves for his no-holds-barred approach to political speech, both in the state and outside of it. Before this latest effort, his most famous antic was paying for a plane to fly a banner with the words “Impeach corrupt Alabama Governor Bob Riley” at the 2009 National Championship game in Pasadena, California, where the Alabama Crimson Tide took on the Texas Longhorns. But Pate’s latest undertaking, in hopes of stymying the presidential aspirations of fellow real estate developer Donald Trump, goes beyond the borders of Alabama. Heck, it extends beyond the United States. Last week a political action committee led by Pate ran full-page satirical ads in Korean and Mexican newspapers, attempting to drum up anti-Trump sentiment in some of the United States’ most frequent trading partners. Pate said swaying American voters wasn’t the goal in his ads, which depicted invoices for a wall and nuclear bombs in Mexico and Korea, respectively. Instead, he hopes they’ll talk to their family and friends who have immigrated to the United States and “sound the alarm” about the possibility of a Trump presidency. “Hopefully they begin to communicate and certainly begin a discussion about this wall,” Pate told NBC News. Pate said his nontraditional tactics are what it’s going to take to get the attention on the nation, and the world. “Getting the public’s attention is not easy,” explained Pate. “I want to make sure that I do everything that I can to bring the public’s attention that there are choices here.” While Pate’s efforts may win points for creativity, there is evidence all the anti-Trump efforts may be for naught. According to a recent report by The Associated Press, it now looks unlikely the #NeverTrump movement will succeed at the Republican National Convention later this month. Numbers are stacked against the insurgents. Trump triumphed in the vast majority of this year’s primaries and caucuses, giving him 1,542 delegates, according to The Associated Press. That’s well above the 1,237 needed to clinch the nomination. Now, it’s true those delegates can vote however they wish during convention battles to change the rules, so delegates pledged to a candidate could back anyone they want. And you can count on such defections, because some delegates representing Trump actually prefer his defeated rival, Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, or others. But Trump still has a big numerical advantage. According to an informal count by one party insider, Trump can rely on a solid 900 delegates, compared to a combined 650 for Trump opponents plus delegates backing Cruz or other candidates. That leaves over 900 remaining delegates. Trump would need only about a third of them to prevail. And don’t forget, many delegates are party regulars inclined to want a gathering that’s peaceful, not a GOP civil war on prime-time TV. The anti-Trump forces have said they have more than 400 delegate supporters. Whether the Dump Trump movement gains any traction in the few remaining weeks before the convention remains to be seen, but it can certainly be said that they’re pulling out all the stops to make it happen.
