New Feingold Ad Defends Obamacare Vote While Refusing to Mention the Bill

Sen. Russ Feingold (D-WI) has been running a curious campaign. Historically one of the most liberal Senators on the Hill, he's been running on a platform that resembles a moderate, and even refuses to be seen with President Obama in Wisconsin's liberal capital of Madison.

His new campaign ad is equally curious. In a state that doesn't approve of Obamacare, Feingold released a new add boasting about what he accomplished through the bill:

Feingold is currently trailing Republican challenger Ron Johnson, who favors repeal, by 12 points. Johnson has picked up on the sentiments of Wisconsin voters, and has been using Feingold's Obamacare position to his advantage:

That makes the Feingold ad all the more confusing. But closer scrutiny reveals that Feingold's ad is missing one key element: while it is seemingly meant to brag about Feingold's vote for Obamacare, it never mentions the piece of legislation.

So does Feingold understand that the bill is so toxic it's not even worth mentioning by name? It would seem that way.

That leaves one important question: why run the ad?

National Review's Andrew Stiles offers a comparison:

Sort of reminiscent of Austin Powers, who, after being dealt a hand of five at the blackjack table, boldly declares “I’ll stay.”