By John Celock
The former chairwoman of the Democratic National Committee is using the first ad in her competitive bid for another term in Congress to say that the focus should be on Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump and not her.
Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D), who was forced to step down as DNC chief last month following hacked emails showing support from DNC staffers for Hillary Clinton’s primary campaign, used the ad to focus largely on national issues. Wasserman Schultz is locked in a competitive Democratic primary race against law professor Tim Canova in the Democratic leaning Fort Lauderdale area district. Canova is backed by Sen. Bernie Sanders in the race.
“I’m Debbie Wasserman Schultz with an important message. People who don’t even live in Florida, including Republicans, are spending outrageous amounts of money on personal attacks directed at me,” she said. “The attacks are just garbage, especially at a time when you and I are focused on stopping Donald Trump’s offensive and dangerous campaign.”
Wasserman Schultz spoke directly to the camera in the ad, noting that the focus should be on attacking Trump and Republicans on issues including women’s health and equality. The message was similar to ones that she focused on during five years chairing the DNC.
The battle between Wasserman Schultz and Canova has grown competitive as Sanders and progressive activists have attacked Wasserman Schultz for what they said was a bias towards Clinton during the Democratic primary contest. The hacked emails, which showed top DNC staffers favoring Clinton and looking to attack Sanders, led to her ouster during the Democratic National Convention last month.