Outside GOP groups abandon fringe anti-immigrant Senate nominee

Rep. Lou Barletta (R-PA) has literally begged outside Republicans groups to help him out — but even his own party is giving the fringe Senate nominee the cold shoulder.

“I have called the NRSC [National Republican Senatorial Committee] twice,” Barletta whined to Fox Business host Lou Dobbs last week. “I’m waiting for a call back.”

Barletta, one of the most extremist anti-immigrant politicians in the country, is running against incumbent Democrat Sen. Bob Casey.

Barletta has repeatedly reached out to Republican groups for help in his flailing campaign, according to the Pittsburg Post-Gazette — but he is being snubbed to a remarkable extent:

Outside spending organizations have poured millions into Senate races across the country while largely ignoring Mr. Barletta. The National Republican Senatorial Committee, the campaign arm of Senate Republicans, has spent more than $31 million on races across the country, including big chunks in Arizona, Missouri, Indiana and Montana — but none in Pennsylvania.

 

The Senate Leadership Fund, linked to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, has raised more than $100 million this cycle and spent more than $56 million in support of Republican candidates — but none on Mr. Barletta.

Out of at least $87 million spent by major Republican groups, Barletta hasn’t received a single penny.

In recent polls, Barletta trails by double digits as Pennsylvanians are rejecting his radical agenda.

As the Post-Gazette notes, Barletta “staked most of his platform” on his record on immigration. PoliticsPA described his anti-immigrant stance as “hand-in-glove with the president.”

Nowhere is this alignment more evident than with Trump’s cruel family separation policy, which Barletta readily defended because he claimed it could have a deterrent effect on immigration.

“So if people knew when they came here what would happen, we would not have this situation,” Barletta told Pittsburg’s KDKA.

Trump’s policy essentially kidnapped children, some who were still breastfeeding, away from their parents as a cruel way to discourage immigrants from seeking a better life in the United States.

Neither the Trump administration nor Barletta cared that many of these families were fleeing violence and legally seeking asylum.

And even though Trump officials knew they risked inflicting lifelong trauma on children, they carried out and defended the unconscionable separations anyway.

Barletta isn’t the only Pennsylvania Republican to defend Trump’s policy of kidnapping and psychologically torturing young children.

Rep. Scott Perry also jumped to Trump’s defense, going so far as to make up stories about human trafficking to defend his monstrous position.

Barletta may have defended Trump — but it doesn’t look like national Republicans will defend Barletta’s floundering, xenophobic campaign in return.