Perhaps it’s fitting that elections are held just days after Halloween. After all, the manipulative scare tactics and fear mongering of political ads that feature “scary voice guy” in a voiceover fit in perfectly with the horror-movie marathons dominating television airwaves. Campaigns have always used rhetorical tactics to distort the truth and motivate voters. But while past campaigns have sought to inspire hope and optimism, many of the ads in the 2022 election cycle were outright manipulations designed to stoke fear and play to our basest instincts about protecting our families and communities. With that said, there are real risks to rights and freedoms at stake in the 2022 election.

Abortion

Democratic ads predicting Republicans will enact a nationwide abortion ban are a stretch, despite promises of a national ban by Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC). The Supreme Court’s Dobbs decision likely precludes both a nationwide ban and nationwide protections.

Nevada’s GOP candidates parse their words very carefully when claiming they won’t support an outright nationwide ban on abortion. However, these same candidates run from the more likely continued assault on women’s rights. The House and Senate have broad powers to penalize states that allow abortions and to use interstate commerce powers to punish abortion providing states and women from non-abortion states who seek abortions elsewhere. In totality, these measures could have the same effect as a national ban.

The Republican project to end abortions in this country has been conducted over decades. Nevada’s GOP candidates uniformly say they are anti-abortion, and none have pledged not to penalize states in which abortion is legal. Some, like Adam Laxalt, appear eager to prosecute women. Until there is significant reform in the party, almost no Republican candidate can be trusted to protect women’s rights.

Sexuality identity rights

Similarly, Democratic ads stoking fears of same-sex marriage being overturned are probably overstated. Justice Clarence Thomas has issued opinions about overturning marriage rights for years, and no other justice has ever joined him in those opinions. Yet, it isn’t unfair to point out that Republicans are engaged in a full-scale assault on LGBTQ+ people, particularly in schools, libraries, bathrooms, sporting events and other public spaces. Moreover, they’ve shown that nothing is sacred in their war on LGBTQ+ people, promoting book bans, blatant regulations on free speech rights and even abusing the legacy of victims of sex crimes by comparing teachers who acknowledge a child with gay parents to “groomers” seeking to manipulate children into perverse sex acts.

False claims about Sisolak and Northshore COVID testing

Joe Lombardo has silently cheered the false PAC ads about Gov. Sisolak’s involvement in Northshore COVID testing. The Las Vegas Sun spent weeks examining the situation and found no evidence of wrongdoing. Indeed, while there was a bit of confusion brought on by the pandemic itself, all state officials—nonpartisan, we should note—have confirmed all state licensing was done properly using the best information at the time.

The real issue, and one Sisolak has said he recognizes, is that we need a process of systematic random sampling to verify tests going forward, if we ever find ourselves in the same situation. But those ads? Don’t believe them.

Crime

Republican disconnect from reality is not new. In recent months, Republican ads have blamed a rise in crime in Las Vegas on Governor Steve Sisolak, while their chosen candidate is quite literally the Clark County Sheriff. It would be laughable if it wasn’t designed to play to people’s primal fears about protecting their families. And there is more than a slight racist tinge to some ads that feature Black people committing crimes.

Joe Lombardo bears direct responsibility for law enforcement in Clark County, and if you’re motivated by this issue, you should not cast a vote for him. He doesn’t even defend himself on this score. At a recent Trump rally, the deranged ex-president went on a rant about Clark County crime, while Lombardo stood by in mute approval. And before we hear any arguments to the contrary, let’s also be clear on this: Governors, no matter what political party they belong to, do not have authority over federal immigration policy or border security.

Inflation

The distortions that take the cake are almost certainly those that try to blame Joe Biden and Democrats for inflation and increased gas prices.

We don’t have the space here to fully run down all of the problems with blaming the president of one country for global inflation. But it’s sufficient to say that Biden wasn’t responsible for COVID coming into existence or for global supply chain issues or for China’s decision to attempt a zero-COVID policy that is still shuttering manufacturing facilities for months at a time, even today. Nor is Biden responsible for the decision of a Russian dictator to invade his neighbor and send global fuel prices skyrocketing. Biden also isn’t responsible for the decision of OPEC+ two weeks ago to take advantage of the Russian invasion of Ukraine to artificially inflate oil prices once again.

Biden did contribute to inflation by extending COVID relief packages that infused trillions of dollars into the U.S. economy. But those infusions were necessary to prevent a depression, and it’s unfair to pin them entirely on Biden, given that almost two-thirds of the $4.5 trillion dollars in COVID relief funding was signed into law by Trump. While most of these circumstances are outside Biden’s control, there can be no doubt that families are struggling, and they need their government to step up to do what’s needed to return our economy to stability and prosperity. Nationally, the Democrats are moving forcefully on those fronts—even as Republicans who voted against the bills try to claim credit for them back home.

Back to facts

We believe Democratic candidates in Nevada have laid out the most compelling and clear vision of a stable and prosperous future—that’s why we’re endorsing them. And, as we have explained, we believe Republican candidates pose grave threats to democracy and civil rights. But both parties pose a threat to the idea of truth. By distorting facts and playing to our collective fears, they are driving us closer to a post-policy society, in which tribal membership outweighs thoughtful leadership.

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