Lindsay Graham welcomed fellow Sen. Joni Ernst to Capitol Hill with a gag gift that played off one of her campaign ads: a hog-castration device, mounted on a wooden board.
Affixed to the board was a plaque with the engraving, “Make ’em squeal, Joni!” — referencing her famous pledge on the campaign trail to do just that to opposing political forces if constituents elected her.
The Iowa Republican’s commercial included her mentioning her growing years of “castrating hogs on an Iowa farm ” and “when I get to Washington, I’ll know how to cut pork.”
The ad quickly went viral — and apparently resonated on Capitol Hill as well.
“That commercial was probably the most effective commercial in the last 20 years and this phrase I think is what that election is all about,” Mr. Graham, South Carolina Republican, told ABC News. “Apparently, in the old days, this is how you did castration of farm animals and I can’t even talk about this without getting nervous. All I can say is that when I saw that commercial, it stuck with me.”
• Cheryl K. Chumley can be reached at cchumley@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.