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Why are the presidential candidates spending so much time raising so much money? To buy TV ads. In Ad Watch, we review the results of their heroic efforts as they come out. Today: President Obama accuses Mitt Romney of using coal miners as props, Romney talks straight into the camera again, the Romney campaign admits Joe Biden is better at selling their economic message, and an anti-immigration group targets black voters.
The Ad: Barack Obama, "Mandatory"
The Issues: The coal miners in Mitt Romney's coal ads.
The Message: The ad is based on a story by WWVA News Radio 1170's David Blomquist reporting that the coal miners in Romney's ad were forced to take an unpaid day at work to go to Romney's rally. "They took a roll call," Blomquist says, "And they had a list of who was there and who wasn't. And felt that they wouldn't have had a job if they did not attend." The final text on the screen is subtle: "Mitt Romney. Not One of Us." (Just kidding, it is the opposite of subtle.)
Who'll See It: TV viewers in Ohio.
Who It's For: Working-class whites in Ohio. Obama is polling ahead of Romney in Ohio, in part because Romney isn't crushing Obama among working-class white males there. Romney has aired ads meant to exploit the sense that it's Obama's fault the coal industry has declined in the state, and this is a response. But more generally, the ad is meant to shift working-class resentment toward Republicans.