A money and advertising war is underway between center-right Republicans and conservative Republicans, a hangover from last week’s vote in the House of Representatives to fund the Department of Homeland Security.
The Senate Conservatives Fund announced Tuesday that it’s raised more than $90,000 to help defend Reps. Tim Huelskamp, R-Kan., Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, and Jim Bridenstine, R-Okla., against television ads paid for by the American Action Network, a center-right political action committee allied with House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio.
The three conservative House members were included in a $400,000 media campaign launched by AAN last week to pressure Republican lawmakers to support a bill that funded the Department of Homeland Security through fiscal 2015 without provisions reversing President Barack Obama’s executive orders on immigration.
The House approved the so-called "clean" DHS bill last week after conservative Republicans failed in their attempt to move the bill through Congress with riders attacking Obama’s immigration moves.
In addition to the TV ads, AAN ran spots on the nationally-syndicated Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity radio shows and digital display ads urging nine other House Republicans to support the "clean" DHS bill.
"American Action Network attacked these conservatives to punish them for opposing Speaker John Boehner’s decision to fund the president’s executive amnesty," Senate Conservatives Fund President Ken Cuccinelli said in a statement. "Speaker Boehner and his allies may think they can use these attack ads to defeat these congressmen in a future primary, but they’re wrong."
In announcing the ads last week, American Action Network President Mike Shields said it was important that Congress fund “national security programs that keep America safe."
Hueslkamp said that rather than attacking Obama’s immigration policies, AAN decided to go after "those of us that are standing up for the Constitution."
"The establishment has attacked me and tried to cut of my fundraising, but it’s backfired," Huelskamp said in a statement. "People in my district are even more supportive now of my efforts and groups like SCF have helped me raise money to get my message out."
The Senate Conservatives Fund is a political action committee that was founded by former Sen. Jim DeMint, R-S.C. He’s now president of the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank.