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The ad looks like any political TV attack ad: Gray, grainy images. Big, bold words that convey negative information. Pictures of scary, rogue international leaders.
The ad, which began airing this week, targets Prince George鈥檚 County Executive Angela Alsobrooks, the Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate. But it doesn鈥檛 come from Alsobrooks鈥� Republican opponent, former Gov. Larry Hogan.
Instead, it鈥檚 paid for by the John Bolton PAC, the political action committee of John Bolton, former President Donald Trump鈥檚 one-time national security adviser, and the U.S. ambassador to the U.N. under former President George W. Bush.
罢丑别听聽has a female narrator and is interspersed with pictures of crime scenes and crime statistics.
鈥淪ince Angela Alsobrooks took over, violent crime, homicides, carjackings, property crime,鈥� the narrator says, with graphics showing them rising. 鈥淚f you live in Prince George鈥檚 County, you already know it, or you鈥檙e a victim yourself. Alsobrooks鈥� answer is lies and excuses.鈥�
The images then switch to pictures of foreign leaders: Vladimir Putin of Russia, Xi Jinping of China, and Ayatollah Sayid Ali Khamenei of Iran.
鈥淚f she backs down to local criminals, will she stand up to international threats like these guys?鈥� the narrator asks. 鈥淎ngela Alsobrooks 鈥� too soft, too inexperienced for dangerous times.鈥�
But Alsobrooks was up with a new TV ad of her own this week, reiterating the oft-repeated聽聽that Hogan is, in fact, a Republican.
罢丑别听聽doesn鈥檛 offer much context, featuring footage of Hogan in several TV interviews from the past few years. It seeks to remind people that while he may be a critic of former President Donald Trump, he is nevertheless a loyal Republican.
The capper: An interview with Axios earlier this year. Asked if he plans to caucus with Republicans if he鈥檚 elected to the Senate, Hogan replies, 鈥淥f course I am, I鈥檓 a lifelong Republican.鈥�
The ad ends with the standard disclaimer from the Democrat: 鈥淚鈥檓 Angela Alsobrooks, and I approved this message.鈥�
Bolton鈥檚 ad buy is part of a more than $1 million investment he is making in the Senate race on Hogan鈥檚 behalf, though the PAC and the former governor鈥檚 campaign cannot coordinate activities. The PAC said Bolton鈥檚 ads are currently being seen on connect television, cable TV, social media, YouTube TV and YouTube, and satellite radio platforms.
Most people probably don鈥檛 remember that Bolton, 75, is a native Baltimorean, the son of a firefighter and a homemaker who grew up in the city at the Baltimore County line, near Catonsville. He won a scholarship to the prestigious McDonough School, where he headed a Students for Goldwater chapter during the 1964 presidential election. Later, as a Yale Law School student, he interned with then-Vice President Spiro Agnew, a Marylander.
