Two Republican Congressmen and military veterans are weighing in on a controversial ad in a Tampa-area state Senate race.
U.S. Reps. Brian Mast and Mike Waltz are rallying to the defense of Jay Collins after what a press release calls the "latest attack ad" from Democratic Sen. Janet Cruz in the competitive Senate District 14 race.
Invoking Collins' Purple Heart, the Congressmen attack Cruz for daring to air a negative spot against a military veteran.
"Just because Jay Collins and I lost legs, in combat, defending Janet Cruz's freedom of speech, it does not mean she needs to squander that freedom spewing the garbage she has on television attacking him," Mast said.
"He fought to protect our families and to keep women and girls safe. She ought to be ashamed of lying about that service while having the nerve to offer hollow gratitude to those deployed around the world," Mast added.
"Jay Collins put his life on the line and even lost his leg fighting for our country," said Waltz, the first Green Beret elected to Congress. "Slandering the character of a wounded veteran who is willing to extend his service to representing his community is beneath the office Janet Cruz holds."
The three-pack ad from the Florida Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee deems Collins as "too extreme for Tampa." The spot contends Collins would jail women who have abortions, and alleges he would raise property taxes and prescription drug prices.
Collins is "so extreme that he's against helping domestic abuse victims" and "women in jail," claims the ad.
"Higher prices for all, and more abuse for the abused," claims the spot, which has seen more than $18,000 of spending in its first day on air.
SD 14 is a blue-leaning seat but a competitive one. About 51.25% of voters under the new SD 14 lines favored Democrat Joe Biden in the 2020 Presidential Election, while 47.33% voted for Republican Donald Trump.
Voter registration mirrors the slight Democratic advantage with 122,751 registered Democrats, 114,588 registered Republicans and 103,528 nonpartisan voters, according to the most recent L2 voter data.
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Florida Politics staff contributed to this report.
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