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Rep. Don Bacon
Rep. Don Bacon, R-Neb., leaves the House Republican Conference meeting at the Capitol Hill Club on May 17. Bill Clark / CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images file

Five must-watch campaign ads from this week

"Biden burgers," "Drain the swamp" and other ads that caught our eye this week.

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Here are five campaign ads that grabbed our attention: 

1. Accusing Laxalt of an anti-abortion agenda

Senate Majority PAC, a group aligned with Senate Democratic leadership, released a new ad in Nevada, alleging former Attorney General Adam Laxalt, "made it a priority to ban abortion, pursuing numerous legal efforts to restrict access to reproductive rights."

The ad also says that Laxalt is "coming after our personal freedoms here in Nevada." He is running for Senate to replace Democratic Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto.

2. "Biden Burgers"

Rep. Don Bacon, R-Neb., is in a tight race for re-election, which the non-partisan Cook Political Report rates as a Toss Up. In a new ad, he accuses the Biden administration of fueling inflation and starting a recession.

"Between gas prices and groceries, cookouts aren't what they used to be," Bacon says in the ad. "You're having to cut back," he adds, before serving his wife two small burgers that he calls, "Biden Burgers."

3. Highlighting pandemic relief efforts

Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., is out with a new ad highlighting his support for the pandemic-era Paycheck Protection Program. The ad features food and beverage workers thanking Rubio for the bill, including one woman who tells viewers, "If it weren't for Senator Rubio, I might not even have a job."

Another worker says, "It was nice to know we had someone like Senator Rubio looking out for us."

4. Chris Pappas promises to "drain the swamp"

Ahead of the Republican primary in New Hampshire's First District, Rep. Chris Pappas, D-N.H., released an ad highlighting his support for a measure that would ban members of Congress from trading stocks.

"I'm leading the fight to ban members of Congress from trading stocks, and ... I'm fighting for tough anti-corruption measures that will truly help drain the swamp," Pappas says in the ad.

Though he faces no Democratic primary challengers, the Cook Political Report predicts a close race between Pappas and the eventual Republican nominee, rating the race a Toss Up.

5. Johnson swats at Barnes

In a new ad this week, Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., attacked his Democratic opponent, Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes, for running "kitschy ads trying to convince you that he’s not a radical leftist." 

"Mandela Barnes is too extreme for Wisconsin," Johnson adds. The two are locked in a tight race that the Cook Political Report rates a Toss Up.