Campaign Almanac: Chuck Grassley unveils new ad, criticizes opponent Mike Franken

U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, released his first ad of the general election, criticizing comments his Democratic opponent Mike Franken has made about rural Iowa.

The ad includes videos of Franken speaking to groups, and begins with a narrator saying “Mike Franken’s Iowa.”

“What I see in rural Iowa is a forlornness in the eye, an emptiness, which I see in South Sudan,” Franken says in one clip.

“It's not the state that I want for the future generations. It's not the state I want to be buried in,” he says in another.

“Who does this guy think he is?” The narrator says at the end of the ad.

"We think Iowans will be shocked as they learn more about Mike Franken’s radical views and low opinion of Iowa," Grassley spokesperson Michaela Sundermann said in a press release. "No one seeking to represent Iowa has ever been this disrespectful toward the state and its people.”

The ad is backed by a six-figure buy and will air across Iowa, the press release said.

Franken’s campaign declined to comment on the new ad.

Franken, a retired Navy admiral, has campaigned as a candidate who can reach across political divides, promising to put “country over party” and saying Grassley is supported by special interests.

In his own ad released Tuesday, Franken pointed to his military experience and said he will stand up to power and special interests in the Senate.

“I’m Michael Franken, and I approve this message because corporate special interests are ripping off Iowa families,” he says in the ad. “We need a senator who doesn’t take their money and isn’t afraid to speak truth to power."

In the most recent Des Moines Register/Mediacom Iowa Poll in July, Grassley led Franken by 8 percentage points, with 47 percent of support compared to Franken’s 39 percent. It was the narrowest margin in the poll’s history for Grassley, who has won each re-election bid by more than 20 percentage points since 1986.

REYNOLDS’ FUNDRAISER: Gov. Kim Reynolds’ annual fall fundraiser will be held Saturday, Oct. 1, at the Iowa State Fairgrounds, her campaign announced.

Speakers and “special guests” for Reynolds’ fifth Harvest Festival will be announced later, her campaign said.

In addition to remarks by Republican officials and candidates, the event will include a barbecue, live music, pumpkin painting and balloon animals.

Doors open at 4 p.m., and the program is scheduled to start at 5:30 p.m. Tickets can be purchased at reynoldsharvestfestival.com.

Gazette-Lee Des Moines Bureau