North Dakota Insurance Commissioner Adam Hamm should stop a new television and radio ad that advertises his agency’s assistance programs, because they promote the Republican’s election campaign, Democratic officials say.
Hamm said he has no intention of asking that the ads be pulled. “These ads are educational. They’re telling North Dakotans about assistance that is available,” he said.
A lawyer for Hamm’s Democratic opponent, Fargo state Rep. Jasper Schneider, sent a letter to broadcasters this week asking that they pull the ad. Their $35,000 cost for production and air time was paid by a federal grant.
“It is our belief that these commercials … are blatantly political, paid for with public funds, and unprecedented this close to an election,” says the letter from Schneider’s lawyer, Alex Reichert, of Grand Forks.
Jack McDonald, an attorney for the North Dakota Broadcasters Association, said he has told the stations the ad triggers a federal political broadcast advertising rule that requires them to sell equal time to Schneider. Reichert’s letter says Schneider intends to ask the stations for equal time.
The television and radio ad invites North Dakota seniors to call the Insurance Department if they have questions about Medicare prescription drug coverage or a program that offers free or cut-rate medicines.
Hamm said seniors have been responding to the ad, and that he has no intention of stopping their broadcast. They began airing July 21, and are scheduled to run until Aug. 17.
“They have a good message, and they’re working,” Hamm said. “They’re reaching North Dakotans, so to say to pull these ads _ basically, what (Democrats) are saying is, we want North Dakotans to be in the dark on this issue. They should be ashamed to do that.”
Jamie Selzler, the state Democratic director, said Hamm’s television ad _ which opens with him speaking on the state Capitol mall, with an image of the American flag in the ad’s lower left-hand corner _ has all the trappings of a campaign spot.
“When you look at how political TV ads generally look, that’s what they look like,” Selzler said. “They use an American flag, there’s the face of the candidate on TV.”
McDonald said the stations will be required to offer Schneider the same amount of advertising time, should he want to buy it.
“They just have to give Jasper the chance to buy the ads at the same price that they charged Hamm … in approximately the same time slots,” McDonald said. “The idea is to reach approximately the same audience.”
Was this article valuable?
Here are more articles you may enjoy.
Progressive Gains as Drivers Shop Around for Auto Insurance—Again 
Coral Gables, Florida Tops Beverly Hills as Ritziest Home Market in US 
Trump’s Bond Insurer Tells Judge Shortfall Is ‘Inconceivable’ 
North Carolina Adjuster and Son Charged With Embezzlement in Roof Jobs 
