Clean-energy super PAC airs ad on Boebert's 2023 'Beetlejuice' theatre ejection
The Invest in Tomorrow Coalition, a renewable-energy super PAC, has launched ads using security footage of Rep. Lauren Boebert being removed from a 2023 Denver performance of "Beetlejuice". It is spending $1.5 million against her as part of a wider plan targeting seven Republicans.
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The story, neutrally told
Left · 2A renewable-energy super PAC, the Invest in Tomorrow Coalition, has launched ads against Colorado Republican Rep. Lauren Boebert that revisit her ejection from a performance of the musical "Beetlejuice" in Denver in September 2023. The IndependentLC “A clean energy Super PAC has targeted Congresswoman Lauren Boebert with a humiliating ad that reminds voters of the time she was kicked out of a Beetlejuice show.” Read at The Independent ↗ Raw StoryL “A renewable energy super PAC has launched ads reminding voters that Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO) was thrown out of a 2023 performance of the musical “Beetlejuice”” Read at Raw Story ↗ Left · 2The ad uses theatre security footage and then turns to costs, saying: "Costs are skyrocketing in Colorado, and politicians are failing us. If Lauren Boebert can't be trusted in a room full of kids, then she can't be trusted in the halls of Congress." The IndependentLC ““Costs are skyrocketing in Colorado, and politicians are failing us,” the ad, obtained by Politico, said.” Read at The Independent ↗ Raw StoryL “The ad then pivots to pocketbook issues.” Read at Raw Story ↗ Left · 2Raw Story, citing The Daily Beast, says a news anchor's narration runs over the grainy footage and describes Boebert and her companion as "explicitly groping each other repeatedly"; The Independent, citing Politico, obtained the ad. Raw StoryL ““She and her companion, explicitly groping each other repeatedly,” the narrator says.” Read at Raw Story ↗ The IndependentLC “the ad, obtained by Politico, said.” Read at The Independent ↗
Left · 1Per Politico, the group will spend $1.5 million against Boebert, part of a $15 million plan, reported by The New York Times, targeting seven Republicans, including Reps. Scott Perry of Pennsylvania and Victoria Spartz of Indiana, who voted to end Biden-era renewable energy incentives. The IndependentLC “Invest in Tomorrow will spend $1.5 million on its campaign against Boebert, according to Politico.”“part of a larger $15 million plan targeting a total of seven Republicans” Read at The Independent ↗ Left · 1Tom Matzzie, a solar company chief executive who chairs the super PAC, told the Times: "No matter how safe you think your seat is, if you politicize our industry, we will come for you and we will win." The IndependentLC ““When we’re done here, we will have fundamentally reshaped the electoral incentives of congressional energy politics” Read at The Independent ↗ Left · 2In 2023 Boebert and her date were accused of vaping, singing, recording and causing a disturbance, and video appeared to show them fondling each other. Boebert first wrote on X that she "plead guilty to laughing and singing too loud", but footage showed her vaping and taking flash photos. She later apologised, citing her divorce and saying she "genuinely did not recall vaping". The IndependentLC “Boebert and her date were accused of vaping, singing, recording and causing a disturbance in the theater before being kicked out.” Read at The Independent ↗ Raw StoryL “Boebert initially downplayed it, writing on X that she “plead guilty to laughing and singing too loud.””“she “genuinely did not recall vaping” that night.” Read at Raw Story ↗
Left · 1Her apology said: "I've tried to handle it with strength and grace as best I can, but I simply fell short of my values on Sunday. That's unacceptable, and I'm sorry." The IndependentLC “That’s unacceptable, and I’m sorry,” the congresswoman wrote on social media at the time.” Read at The Independent ↗ Left · 2Boebert is seeking re-election in Colorado's 4th District against Democrat Eileen Laubacher. Raw Story says a PAC-funded poll has her leading 45% to 40%, with an independent at 9% and 6% undecided. The IndependentLC “Boebert is running for reelection against Democrat Eileen Laubacher in Colorado’s 4th Congressional District” Read at The Independent ↗ Raw StoryL “A poll funded by the PAC shows her leading her Democratic opponent 45 percent to 40 percent, with an independent candidate at 9 percent and 6 percent of voters undecided.” Read at Raw Story ↗ Left · 1On energy, Boebert's website says she supports solar, wind and hydropower alongside oil, gas and coal, but that fossil fuels "are the backbone of our energy security". The IndependentLC “she insists that fossil fuels “are the backbone of our energy security.”” Read at The Independent ↗
Left · 1Raw Story adds that a complaint to the House Ethics Committee accuses Boebert of sex with three staffers and alleges a roughly $200,000 payment after one threatened to go to the committee. It was filed by the head of a PAC that has long targeted her, and her office says there is "zero truth" to it. Raw StoryL “Boebert’s office has said there is “zero truth” to the allegations.”“The complaint was filed by the head of a political action committee that has targeted Boebert for years.” Read at Raw Story ↗
Every sentence links to the reporting it rests on. The pill in front of each says where its sources sit: Left, Centre or Right when one side supplies at least half of them, Mixed when they are evenly split. The number is how many outlets it cites.
Left2 outlets
- Framing
- Both outlets present the ad as a fresh embarrassment for Boebert, leading on the 2023 incident and its return to the campaign.
- Emphasis
- The Independent adds the PAC's spending and its energy-policy motive; Raw Story adds the footage details, the poll and the separate ethics complaint.
- Leaves out or plays down
- Neither carries a Boebert campaign response to the ad itself; the PAC's industry stake is noted mainly by The Independent.
- Charged language
- “humiliating”“scandal”“fiasco”“haunt”
- For example
-
“A clean energy Super PAC has targeted Congresswoman Lauren Boebert with a humiliating ad” — The Independent
“A Colorado Republican’s embarrassing night out is getting a second life on voters’ screens as she fights for reelection.” — Raw Story
Centre0 outlets
No centre outlet in our sources has covered this story yet.
Right0 outlets
No right outlet in our sources has covered this story yet.
What every side reports
- The Invest in Tomorrow Coalition, a renewable-energy super PAC, is running ads about Boebert's 2023 ejection from "Beetlejuice".
- The ad uses theatre security footage and the line "If Lauren Boebert can't be trusted in a room full of kids".
- Boebert apologised for the incident, citing her divorce.
Lauren Boebert person
Boebert apologised in 2023, citing her divorce, and says fossil fuels are the backbone of energy security. Her office says there is "zero truth" to the separate ethics allegations.
“Boebert’s office has said there is “zero truth” to the allegations.” — Raw Story
“I simply fell short of my values on Sunday.” — The Independent
Left2 articles
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Lauren Boebert targeted by SuperPAC with humiliating ad on ‘Beetlejuice’ scandal
Mixed Reports the ad and the PAC's $15 million plan against seven Republicans, with a headline calling it humiliating.
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Beetlejuice fiasco comes back to haunt Boebert: ‘Can’t be trusted in a room full of kids’
Critical Treats the ad as the incident returning to haunt Boebert, adding unflattering 2023 reactions and a separate ethics complaint.
Centre0 articles
No coverage yet.
Right0 articles
No coverage yet.
- 9 Oct 03:10 First The IndependentLC Lauren Boebert targeted by SuperPAC with humiliating ad on ‘Beetlejuice’ scandal
- 9 Oct 22:11 +19h 2m Raw StoryL Beetlejuice fiasco comes back to haunt Boebert: ‘Can’t be trusted in a room full of kids’
Times are when each article was published, or when we first saw it if the outlet gave no time.