Ad tries to link Oklahoma gubernatorial hopeful Jari Askins with Obama

The tag line for the commercial, which began airing on Oklahoma TV stations Wednesday, is "Jari Askins: ideas too liberal for Oklahoma." It was paid for by the Republican Governors Association.

The ad says Askins, Oklahoma's lieutenant governor, and Obama, who failed to win a single Oklahoma County in the 2008 presidential election, are similar in that "they both support immigration policies too liberal for Oklahoma."

The ad is referring to legislation passed in 2003 which allows undocumented students who graduate from Oklahoma high schools to pay in-state tuition and apply for state financial aid to attend college. Askins, who then served in the state House of Representatives, voted for the measure.

"In the bill highlighted in the ad, Jari joined an overwhelming and bipartisan majority of legislators in supporting a bill that set standards for college admissions and required that undocumented students report themselves to immigration officials and seek to legalize their immigration status," said Sid Hudson, Askins' campaign manager.

"The so-called liberal bill was co-authored by Republicans and Democrats, and even House Bill 1804, one of the toughest immigration laws in the country, specifically protected this policy," he said.