Corbett attack ad features Wolf look-a-like

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Some Pennsylvania TV watchers may be scratching their heads — wondering if the face in a new anti-Tom Wolf ad is actually, Tom Wolf.

A new ad from Pennsylvania Governor Tom Corbett’s uses a Tom Wolf look-a-like to accuse his Democratic opponent of refusing to release information about his personal and corporate finances.

The ad shows four men in dress pants and button-down shirt with television sets sitting on their shoulders instead of heads. Each set shows the very animated expressions of a man who looks a lot like Tom Wolf. But isn’t really him.

“Tom Wolf spent millions bragging about himself in TV ads. But when Wolf was asked to make public information about a questionable loan Wolf received, Wolf said ‘No!.’ When Wolf was called on to release the finds of an audit about how women were treated in Wolf’s company, Wolf refused.”

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The questions about the loan and audit were raised by Wolf’s Democratic opponents last spring. Wolf says he revealed the terms of the loan. A spokeswoman for Wolf challenged the Corbett Administration’s record on transparency — saying Corbett has withheld information about donor gifts and government operations.

Chris Borick is a political science professor at Muhlenberg College. He called the ad is “innovative,” but said it’s message is fairly traditional.

“[It’s] using incomplete information to try and portray Wolf’s character in a fairly negative sense,” Borick said. “So while it’s pretty creative in terms of the use of the television sets as part of the Wolf image. It really doesn’t do anything particularly new in its strategy of reducing a candidate’s likability.”

Borick said Corbett is trailing in the polls and the ad is likely an effort by the Corbett campaign to try to lower Wolf’s approval ratings.

You can read the Corbett camaign’s explanation and supporting material for the ad’s charges here, and the Wolf campaign’s response challenging Corbett’s transparency here.

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