Rothenberg Praises MMH Work for Anne Northup

September 18, 2000

Stu Rothenberg cited McCarthy Marcus Hennings’ advertising in a recent Roll Call column – “Candidates Seek Early Knockout Blows with Hard-Hitting TV Spots.”

Rohenberg wrote, “It's only mid-September, but Rep. Anne Northup (R) of Kentucky's 3rd district and Sam Neill (D), who is seeking to oust Rep. Charles Taylor (R) in North Carolina's 11th district, are up with two of the tougher TV spots I've ever seen.

‘Wages,’ a 30-second TV ad produced by McCarthy Marcus Hennings for Northup, begins by asserting, ‘Eleanor Jordan is worried about wages ... her wages.’ It goes on to cite two pay raises and a pension hike for which the Democratic legislator voted. But that's just the setup.

Then the ad switches to a shot of Jordan in front of a microphone on the floor of the Kentucky House. ‘I urge you to pass this bill. Let's get on with it,’ says a clearly impatient and annoyed Jordan. As she looks down at her watch, Jordan delivers a line that is likely to haunt her well into the next decade: ‘I have a fundraiser at six o'clock, and I want to get out of here.’

The ad's tag line, ‘Jordan, putting herself first,’ is hardly necessary. Whether the ad alone sinks Jordan is uncertain. What is certain is that Republicans are clearly worried about the race even though Northup has proved to be a strong fundraiser and an effective candidate.

Jordan has received solid support from organized labor and the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, both spurred on by the district's considerable Democratic base and its antipathy toward Northup, who has been willing to take a visible role in furthering the House GOP's agenda.

But you have to wonder whether ‘Wages’ is merely a good body blow or an uppercut to the jaw that produces a KO.”

Northup won.

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