The Club for Growth announced on Friday it had hired a prominent advertising firm that had been blacklisted by the campaign arm of Senate Republicans because some of its work went toward defeating incumbent GOP lawmakers in primary contests.
Chris Chocola, Club for Growth president, said they have hired Jamestown Associates and that the firm would be used to help state Sen. Chris McDaniels oust Republican Sen. Thad Cochran in Mississippi and Ben Sasse win the seat currently held by Nebraska Sen. Mike Johanns, who is not running for re-election.
“We’ve long admired Jamestown Associates for their creativity, winning record in tough campaigns, and the quality of their product,” Mr. Chocola said. “When we heard recently that they would have more time to work with Club for Growth Action we immediately seized the opportunity.”
In November, the National Republican Senatorial Committee decided to cut ties with Jamestown Association and urged others in the party to do the same — highlighting the ongoing rift between the GOP establishment and independent conservative groups.
The decision was a response to the work the firm did for the Senate Conservatives Fund, which was founded by former South Carolina Sen. Jim DeMint and is looking to replace Republicans with more conservative candidates in the 2014 primary races.
“We’re not going to do business with people who profit off of attacking Republicans,” NRSC spokesman Brad Dayspring told the New York Times in November. “Purity for profit is a disease that threatens the Republican Party.”
• Seth McLaughlin can be reached at smclaughlin@washingtontimes.com.
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