Progressives Call Out Harry Reid in New Ad

A progressive group is taking off the gloves with a new ad titled, straightforwardly, “Is Harry Reid Strong Enough?” The ad, which begins airing in Nevada on Wednesday, features a self-proclaimed “typical swing-voter” with health problems vowing ominously to vote for Reid in 2010 based exclusively on whether he’s “a strong and effective enough leader to pass a public option.”

The group, the Progressive Change Campaign Committee, has run similar ads against other Democrats, but it’s likely to hit home harder for Reid, an avowed fan of the public option facing an uphill reelection battle. The ad notes, too, that 52% of Nevadans support a public option, according to a September poll commissioned by the Daily Kos. That same poll pegged Reid’s favorability rating at 36%. (More Harry Reid stories.)