Democrat Tim Kaine and Republican George Allen released dueling ads Monday on topics they will likely hash out later in the evening when the two U.S. Senate candidates debate on television for the second time.
Kaine tapped U.S. Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., whose popularity is unmatched by any Virginia politician, to do a 30-second spot that plays up their history of working together. Shot outside the Richmond Capitol, the ad emphasizes Kaine and Warner's shared willingness to work across the aisle to solve problems, a point Kaine's campaign said he will emphasize during the debate.
See Kaine's ad:
Kaine was lieutenant governor when Warner was governor and Warner has been Kaine's biggest ally on the campaign trail.
"We were a great team in Richmond," Warner says in the ad. To which Kaine adds, "And we'll be a great team in Washington."
Allen's ad centers on looming defense cuts that could dramatically undercut Virginia's military-centric economy more so than almost any other state. Allen frequently meets with defense contractors during campaign stops and is using the issue to build support in Pentagon-reliant Northern Virginia and Hampton Roads, the state's most populous areas.
See Allen's ad:
Unlike Kaine's positive commercial, Allen's ad goes after Kaine for initially supporting a debt-ceiling deal that now threatens to cut $500 billion from the military. Kaine has since called on Congress to find a new solution that would avoid the deep cuts and offered his own plan, which would include raising taxes on higher earners and eliminating oil industry subsidies.
"George Allen opposed [the deal]," the ad says. "Kaine attacked him and insisted the deal was 'the right thing to do.'"
Monday's debate begins at 8 p.m. and can be seen on CSPAN and local TV stations. It's the only debate that will air statewide.