Muckraker: Grist on Politics

The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee is targeting Sen. Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) for supporting Big Oil. A new ad highlights the fact that he voted to give oil companies tax breaks and voted against legislation to curb speculation in the oil market.

“While oil companies make record profits, Roger Wicker votes to give them $28 billion in tax breaks,” the ad says. “On Election Day, make sure Roger Wicker feels your pain.”

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Mississippi’s Republican Gov. Haley Barbour tapped Wicker last November to temporarily assume Trent Lott’s seat after the senator resigned just one year into a six-year term. Now Wicker must defend the seat in a special election in November that will determine who serves out the rest of Lott’s term. Challenging Wicker from the Democratic camp is former Gov. Ronnie Musgrove. While Wicker is technically the incumbent and the state generally leans heavily Republican, the race is expected to be a close one. And like many others around the country this year, energy is likely to be a hot topic.

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Here’s the ad: