AI Summary
5 min readIn the Michigan primary, Abdullah El-Sayed won the Democratic nomination for an open House seat, and the first ad from his Republican opponent, Mike Rogers, didn't feature El-Sayed much at all. Instead, it cut frantically between five different people—including the left-wing streamer Hasan Piker—saying things like "America deserved 9/11" and "kill those motherfuckers," before ending with a clip of El-Sayed saying something complimentary about Piker. The ad was trying to weaponize El-Sayed's associations, but the hosts of Pod Save America were skeptical it would work.
The Limits of the "Guilt by Association" Attack
The hosts argued that the ad presumed too much knowledge from voters. Most people don't know who Hasan Piker is, and if they do, they're probably already voting for El-Sayed. They struggled to think of a historical example where attacking a candidate's associations actually cost them an election. The Jeremiah Wright attacks on Obama didn't work. Bill Ayers didn't work. The most successful example, the Willie Horton ad, was different because it tied an association to a specific policy decision. The ad was also described as "frantic" and "forgettable," jumping between too many figures without landing a clear punch. One host suggested a better version would focus on one person and then show El-Sayed apologizing for the association. The hosts also questioned whether
Continue reading the full summary in the app — free to try.
Read Full Summary →Free • No credit card required
Never miss an episode of Breaking News from Pod Save America
Get every new episode summarized in your inbox — free, ~5 minutes to read.
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
What you'll learn
- 1 (00:19) **Introducing the Attack Ad Against Abdullah El-Sayed** - The hosts watch and react to Mike Rogers' first ad targeting El-Sayed by associating him with controversial left-wing figures like Hasan Piker.
- 2 (06:57) **Debating the Strategy and Potential Impact of the Attack** - The hosts analyze the ad's production, testing, and whether it’s a serious media buy or a play for earned media.
- 3 (07:27) **El-Sayed's Primary Ad: A Humorous Counter-Punch** - The hosts watch and praise El-Sayed's primary ad, which uses his grandmother to humanize him and preempt Republican attacks.
- 4 (10:47) **Obama Parallels and the "Celebrity" Attack Line** - The hosts note the striking similarities between the dynamics of El-Sayed's race and Obama's 2008 primary campaign.
- 5 (12:16) **Introducing the Wisconsin Governor's Race and Francesca Hong** - The hosts shift to a competitive Democratic primary in Wisconsin, where State Representative Francesca Hong is leading in the polls.
- 6 (12:33) **Analyzing Francesca Hong's Campaign Ad** - The hosts watch Hong's biographical ad, which focuses on her background as a chef and her message of hope against a "rigged system."
- 7 (14:02) **Why Hong's Message is Resonating Despite Weakness in Interviews** - The hosts debate why Hong is leading by such a large margin, even if she performs poorly in one-on-one interviews.
+ Full timestamped outline available in the app
Guests on this episode
Show Notes
Dan Pfeiffer is joined by Sam Stein, managing editor of The Bulwark, to break down ads for Mike Rogers, Abdul El-Sayed, and Francesca Hong.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
More from this podcast
Breaking News from Pod Save America →