Is Ralph Norman using a congressional privilege to help his bid for SC governor?
U.S. Rep. Ralph Norman is on the air in his campaign for South Carolina governor. But another ad being paid for with taxpayer money might be contributing to his bid for statewide office.
Both television spots have almost exact messaging and feature Norman, a Republican hopeful, speaking to the camera about the need for term limits and stopping lawmaker pay raises.
Norman’s office, while using the congressional franking privilege, is running a 30-second spot in television markets that touch the 5th Congressional District, which Norman represents. It touts efforts by Norman to clean up Washington, stop corruption, fight against pay raises for politicians, and push for term limits.
Norman also has a one-minute long franked radio ad with the same messaging.
The ads, paid for with money from authorized by the U.S. House of Representatives, also cites legislation pending in Congress that Norman is sponsoring.
The franked ad comes as a bipartisan group of current and former members of Congress, including U.S. Rep. Jim Clyburn, are suing for back pay after federal lawmaker pay was frozen in 2009 at $174,000 a year. That year, during the Great Recession, lawmakers blocked automatic cost-of-living increases for themselves.
These ads do not mention Norman’s run for governor.
As a member of Congress, Norman has a franking privilege, which allows members to send out communications to constituents without asking for donations or asking for support in an election. Those communications may also include radio spots, mailers, text messages, emailed newsletters or digital ads on social media.
The total cost for Norman’s ads has not been disclosed, but the spot has to stop running by April 10 as rules disallow franked communications within 60 days of an election. The primary is June 9. Quarterly disbursements are released to the public within 60 days after the end of a quarter.
The Norman campaign referred question to his congressional office when asked about the dual messaging.
“It should come as no surprise to any of Ralph’s constituents that he has been fighting for term limits for years and is adamant on stopping the corrupt politicians from raising their own pay, like some in our own delegation,” Sophie Lyczek, a spokeswoman for Norman’s congrssional office, said in a statement.
Similar messages in the ads
According to FCC records, Norman’s campaign for governor purchased more than $397,000 worth of airtime on broadcast television stations across the state’s four main media markets: Charleston, Columbia, Greenville/Spartanburg and Myrtle Beach/Florence.
The campaign ad called “Crooks” touches on efforts by state lawmakers to give themselves a raise last year, which ultimately was shot down by the state Supreme Court. It also touches on how he’s called a Taxpayer Superhero by Citizens Against Government Waste, and how he will push for term limits and root out corruption.
“Columbia politicians are a bunch of crooks. Raising their pay. Not fixing our roads. State spending is up 45%. Wasted on garbage,” Norman says in the campaign ad. “I will Clean Up Columbia starting with term limits to stop the corruption.”
In the franked ad, Norman touts his efforts to stop automatic pay raises for federal lawmakers.
“I’m Ralph Norman. Voting to raise your own pay. That’s outrageous,” Norman says in the franked ad.
“Ralph Norman, yes to term limits, no to pay raises for politicians,” the voice-over narrator then ads. “Call Ralph Norman today if you agree.”
5th District spreads into 3 television markets
The franked ad is only airing in markets that touch the 5th District. Norman is from Rock Hill in the Charlotte-area.
The Charlotte television market only has four South Carolina counties: Chester, Chesterfield, Lancaster and York.
However, the 5th District does include parts of Spartanburg, Union and Cherokee Counties, which are in the Greenville/Spartanburg television market, and Kershaw, Fairfield, Lee, Newberry and Sumter, which are in the Columbia TV market, which would allow his ad to potentially air in at least a fifth of the state’s 46 counties.
