If you have been in or around Inglewood lately you’ve probably noticed advertisements everywhere for and against Measure HC – a ballot measure that would raise the healthcare worker minimum wage to $25 per hour. The measure – backed by local healthcare workers unions, including SEIU-United Healthcare Workers West, has faced strong opposition by the hospital industry. Recent documents obtained by the LA Sentinel show just how strong and expensive that opposition has been.
According to campaign finance documents filed with the Inglewood City Clerk, the No on Measure HC campaign spent $1,732,327 in the period from January 1st to September 24th. This puts the campaign on pace to be one of the biggest-spending campaigns Inglewood has ever seen.
Notably, the No on HC campaign’s two highest-paid consulting firms are two Republican firms with a history of working for some of the most conservative politicians in the country. BASK Digital Media, based in San Diego, was paid over $500,000 by the No on HC campaign, while Target Enterprises LLC was paid over $700,000 by the campaign in the same period.
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This is not the first time BASK and Target Enterprises have teamed up on a campaign. In 2018, they were the two largest vendors for Don Blankenship for U.S. Senate, receiving almost $3 million from a campaign famed for racist and bizarre advertising.
During his run for a U.S. Senate seat in West Virginia, Blankenship famously produced an ad in which he referred to Asian Americans as “China people” and referred to himself as “Trumpier than Trump.”
Target Enterprises additionally received nearly $8 million from former U.S. Senator David Perdue, who was defeated in 2020 after being accused of using insider information to profit off of the pandemic.
BASK Digital and Target Enterprises have been paid millions over the years to elect anti-choice and pro-Trump Republicans. Hiring these firms to manage a campaign in Inglewood, a city in which Joe Biden received over 88% of the vote in 2020, is sure to raise eyebrows.
Notably, the Yes on Measure HC campaign has been endorsed by Congresswoman Maxine Waters, Los Angeles County Supervisor Holly Mitchell, and the Los Angeles County Democratic Party.