REPORT: Loeffler Caught Up in Republican Plagiarism Scandal

Both Loeffler and Kansas Republican with same outside group backers have “identical or near-identical” economic plans

ATLANTA — Today, a new report from the Kansas City Star revealed a plagiarism scandal involving unelected “political mega-donor” Senator Kelly Loeffler and Kansas Republican Roger Marshall. 

Loeffler and Marshall — who have used the same GOP digital communications consulting firm — recently released economic plans mirroring each other, raising questions about their “identical or near-identical phrasings.”

Both Loeffler and Marshall have also received backing from many of the same outside groups that have spent big to prop each of them up in intraparty Republican battles. Maybe that’s why Loeffler struggled to explain the similarities and originally “did not directly address the striking resemblance between the plans.”

“Kelly Loeffler has spent her short time as an unelected senator caught up in one scandal after another as she struggles to earn voters’ trust after her shady stock trades,” said Alex Floyd, spokesman for the Democratic Party of Georgia. “No amount of boilerplate talking points will make Georgians forget how her first priority in the pandemic was protecting her stock portfolio instead of rushing relief to our state.”

Read more about Loeffler and Marshall’s “identical” plans:

Kansas City Star: Is Marshall plan really Marshall’s? It bears striking resemblance to Georgia senator’s

• As the COVID-19 pandemic plunged the economy into crisis this spring, Georgia Republican Sen. Kelly Loeffler introduced her plan to ignite a recovery.

• Two months later, Kansas Republican Rep. Roger Marshall’s campaign for U.S. Senate posted its own economic program.

• Except for a few words inserted after “manufacturing,” the language was identical to Loeffler’s.

• Using tax credits to spur investment or shifting the supply chain away from China and other competitors are not groundbreaking ideas. 

• But there are only two places on the internet where they are phrased the exact same way: Loeffler’s official site and Marshall’s campaign site.

• It’s one of several identical or near-identical phrasings in Marshall’s economic plan.

• Loeffler’s office did not directly address the striking resemblance between the plans.

• The campaigns have both used Repubclick, a digital consulting and strategic communications firm with offices in Atlanta and Washington. Marshall has paid the firm more than $21,000 since last year; Loeffler’s paid $11,000 in April.

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