Ryan Mackenzie

The cease-and-desist is the second time in two weeks a candidate in the race has called on the other to take down an ad.

For the second time in less than two weeks, a candidate in the Lehigh Valley’s highly competitive race for Congress has called on their opponent to take down a television ad they consider false and defamatory.

And for the second time, the other one has refused.

U.S. Rep. Ryan Mackenzie (R., Lehigh), in a letter sent by his lawyer Tuesday, said a new ad from Democratic challenger Bob Brooks that claims he opposed a bill to strengthen mental health coverage for first responders when he was a state lawmaker is “defamatory and provably false.”

The candidates have traded attacks for weeks in what’s become one of the most expensive and volatile of Pennsylvania’s four nationally watched U.S. House races this fall. Earlier this month, Brooks called on Mackenzie to pull down an ad that called him a “criminal” and then canceled their only scheduled debate when the Republican declined to pull the ad.

The latest ad from Brooks — a firefighter union leader who a recent poll showed was leading Mackenzie by 5 percentage points — involves a 2024 state law that made it easier for firefighters, police officers, and other first responders to get workers’ compensation coverage for post-traumatic stress injury. It passed after several years of failed attempts, and Brooks was among those leading the lobbying effort because of his union role.

The ad features State Rep. Jennifer O’Mara, a Delaware County Democrat who sponsored a version of the bill after speaking publicly about her father, a former Philadelphia firefighter who died by suicide while struggling with post-traumatic stress.

“There was a bill to get our first responders real mental health coverage,” O’Mara said in the ad. “Ryan Mackenzie fought us the whole time.”

The message echoed a frequent criticism from Brooks. He has repeatedly claimed Mackenzie was “one of the biggest opponents” during his lobbying efforts, but has also not provided further clarification. On at least one occasion, he said Mackenzie specifically voted against the legislation — a claim that notably doesn’t appear in the ad.

Mackenzie’s lawyer and campaign team wrote that the ad displays a “reckless disregard for the truth” because the Republican voted for the bill and believed it to be a “crucial issue.”

“[H]e voted in favor of this legislation every time it came before him, on three separate recorded votes, and never once voted against it,” wrote Mackenzie’s lawyer, Britain R. Henry, of Goldstein Law Partners.

The Republican’s campaign manager, Andres Weller, said in an additional statement that Brooks’ “casual willingness to lie to voters is once again on full display in the closing days of this campaign.”

Brooks’ campaign responded quickly to reject the letter and elevate Brooks’ supporters who were involved with the legislative effort in Harrisburg who believed Mackenzie to be a roadblock.

Jeremy Warmkessel, the president of the International Association of Fire Fighters Local 302 in Allentown, said he met with Mackenzie around 2019 or 2020 when the bill was in a Republican-controlled committee he belonged to. The measure was the union’s top legislative priority, and Mackenzie did not help to bring up the bill for a vote, Warmkessel said.

State Rep. Tarik Khan, a Philadelphia Democrat, also criticized Mackenzie for not working as vice chair of the committee to force a vote.

“When you’re in a position of leadership, you have that responsibility,” Khan said.

Mackenzie’s letter specifically combated that argument — noting that another Republican lawmaker was the committee chair at the time and it was not Mackenzie’s decision to schedule legislation for a vote. It also points to the lawmaker’s former statements in which he promotes strengthening healthcare for first responders.

The letter said it was placing Brooks’ campaign “on notice” and that further publication of the ad would “constitute actual malice,” a requirement for defamation claims. Such letters are not uncommon in heated campaigns and are often ignored, though some are followed by lawsuits.

In July, Democrat Bob Harvie — who is challenging Republican U.S. Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick in the Bucks County-based 1st Congressional District — sent a cease-and-desist and later filed a defamation suit against a political action committee making claims that he said were false. The ads continued.

“The ad will not be coming down,” Brooks spokesperson Benny Stanislawski said Tuesday. “Ryan Mackenzie stonewalled efforts to pass PTSI benefits for firefighters and first responders while he was serving in Harrisburg, and only changed his tune once he decided he wanted to run for Congress.”

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