Rep. Bruce Braley’s (D., Iowa) campaign released a new ad touting his willingness to work across the aisle to pass legislation. During his time in Congress, Braley has been closely associated with the liberal wing of his party and played a role in marshaling votes for President Barack Obama’s signature health care law—which passed the House without a single Republican vote.
The campaign team for Braley, who is currently locked in a tight Senate race with Republican Joni Ernst, tweeted the ad out on Monday.
"Iowans expect you to work hard to build relationships with people," Braley says in the ad. "I’ll work with anyone who will help solve the tough problems that we face."
However, the Hill reported back in 2009 that Braley was a member of then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s (D., Calif.) "go-to gang" when she needed votes to pass the Affordable Care Act (more commonly known as Obamacare). Obamacare passed the House in March 2010 without a single GOP vote.
Braley has also supported Pelosi’s agenda in the House about 95 percent of the time in recent years, according to the Republican Party of Iowa and Congressional Quarterly records. In 2006 when Braley first ran for Congress, the Des Moines Register—the newspaper of record in Iowa—described him as "an unapologetic liberal Democrat."
"Congressman Braley is an unapologetic liberal, so it’s ridiculous that he’s talking about bipartisanship. After supporting Nancy Pelosi’s failed agenda over 95 percent of the time, Congressman Braley is the last person anyone would trust to be bipartisan," said Jahan Wilcox, Republican Party of Iowa spokesman, in a statement.
Ernst has a slight two-point edge over Braley in the closely contested race, according to the Real Clear Politics poll average.