Even if you were not alive to see it in 1964, you may well have heard of the "Daisy ad," the most famous (or infamous) political television ad of all time. President Johnson ran the ad only once; it was designed to instill the fear that his Republican opponent, Barry Goldwater, would deploy nuclear weapons if elected, and bring about a nuclear armageddon. Take a look: Though it only aired once, it was played again and again on television news stations. It appeared to work beautifully, as Johnson cruised to reelection with the highest popular-vote percentage in modern history, 61.1%. Now, 44 years later, a fellow Democrat is airing an ad with obviously intentional similarities to "Daisy". The ad is in reference to Republican Aaron Schock's stated plan to sell Pershing nuclear missiles to Taiwan, perhaps the most brazenly reckless policy idea of the cycle. Callahan isn't pulling any punches, it seems. It's certainly a bold move on the part of Callahan's campaign, to copy the Daisy ad, though it is about time the campaign aggressively targeted Schock's shocking nuclear gaffe. It's certain to garner attention; we will see if the controversy will help or hinder Callahan's campaign. Callahan needed to do something to shake up her campaign, as she's trailing Schock by a wide margin in the polls. Whether she's landed a terrific blow on the Republican, or whether this ad will be viewed as a bridge too far, remains to be seen.
add a comment