The Club for Growth released an advertisement slamming Gov. Jim Justice (R-WV) for his ties to Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) and the Washington "swamp."
The conservative group, which has endorsed Rep. Alex Mooney (R-WV) in the 2024 West Virginia Senate election, hit at the popular governor in a video that describes him as "the establishment's hand-picked candidate for Senate."
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The video begins with Justice saying, "This is the definition of the swamp," followed by a narrator accusing Justice of being embroiled in the Washington "swamp."
"Jim Justice: The establishment’s hand-picked candidate for Senate. Personally recruited by Mitch McConnell. Private texts, love letters, and swamp-stained campaign cash. Payback for the $100,000 Justice’s family gave to help McConnell? A down payment on Justice’s loyalty," the narrator said.
"Who knows what deals were cut, but we do know Justice is McConnell’s man, not West Virginia’s,” the ad concludes.
The advertisement, shared first with the Hill, will air before and during the Republican presidential debate on Fox News in West Virginia as part of a $9,000 ad buy, per the outlet.
Justice is the front-runner in the Republican primary, as a popular incumbent governor in the state, but has come under scrutiny for his family's business and personal finances. Justice and Mooney are running to unseat Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) in the heavily Republican state.
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An ECU poll conducted in May shows Justice leads Mooney in the Republican primary 53% to 12%. The same poll shows Justice leading Manchin in a head-to-head matchup 54% to 32%, while Mooney narrowly leads Manchin 41% to 40%.
Manchin has not confirmed if he will seek an additional term in 2024 but has said he will make a decision by the end of the year. The West Virginia Democrat has not publicly ruled out a third-party run for president in 2024, only saying that if he gets "in a race, I’m gonna win."