This Marco Rubio Commercial Looks Astonishingly Familiar

A recent campaign TV commercial from Marco Rubio’s presidential campaign is quite similar to a 2010 commercial by the conservative group Citizens for the Republic.

But then both ads are a reflection of the iconic 1984 campaign commercial for Ronald Reagan’s re-election, touting, “Morning in America.” The Reagan ad talked about how the country was better off than it was four years earlier.

By stark contrast, the “Mourning in America” ad by Citizens for the Republic in 2010 — which sought to motivate voters to elect a Republicans Congress — and the recent Rubio ad, both share a common theme and near identical language about how poorly the country has done under President Barack Obama. Rubio’s ad differs in mentioning Hillary Clinton.

Here are both ads. You be the judge.

Talk radio host Laura Ingraham is the national chairwoman of Citizens for the Republic. Reagan biographer Craig Shirley is the chairman. Diana Banister is the executive director. The two run the powerhouse Washington D.C.-area public relations firm of Shirley & Banister Public Affairs. The firm is currently working with the presidential campaign of Ohio Gov. John Kasich, but previously worked with the campaign of Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker.

The Rubio campaign did not immediately respond to inquiries for this story.