Back in late May, a few weeks before the June primary, Mikie Sherrill said at a campaign forum in Livingston that, if elected, she would not back Nancy Pelosi for House Democratic leader, a stance she has reiterated more than once ever since.

Yet, in a clear sign that the rhetoric in the race for Congress in the 11th District is escalating, Republican Jay Webber recently put up an ad on his website that says Sherrill is a “Pelosi Democrat.”

What gives?

Webber relies on comments Sherrill recently made in Pompton Plains in which she praises Pelosi’s leadership when she was House Speaker and some of the legislation she championed. Webber uses that point to condemn some of that very legislation, including the Affordable Care Act. The ad complains that the ACA has dramatically increased the cost of Medicaid, but omits that one reason why is because millions more people, including many in New Jersey, now have access to health insurance. It also is instructive that the move to expand Medicaid in New Jersey under the ACA was executed by the Christie administration.

More interesting perhaps is Webber’s linking of Sherrill to Pelosi. Clearly, Webber sees this as a winning strategy.

But you have to wonder. Pelosi may be seen as a pariah by loyal Republicans but Webber likely already has the votes of loyal Republicans. Is using Pelosi to attack Sherrill going to help Webber win over moderates? Maybe. Maybe not.

As for the substance of the charge, the ground here is a bit shaky.

It is not a contradiction for Sherrill to say that she admired Pelosi as speaker, but that Democrats need new leadership in Congress.

People generally are able to hold two different thoughts at once.

Speaking of women, Webber also has two new spots on his website proclaiming that he is a long-time “advocate for women.” The spots feature women who praise Webber, a lawyer, for helping them in various ways.

“I stand up for women. It’s the right thing to do,” the candidate says in one of the spots.

These spots prompted a quick response from the Sherrill camp.

Mollie Binotto, the Democrat’s campaign manager, said in a statement, “Assemblyman Webber is trying to bury a ten-year career in Trenton pushing an agenda that is harmful to the women of New Jersey, on everything from reproductive health care to equal pay for equal work.”

The statement included a roster of votes Webber reportedly has cast in Trenton against women’s interests, including his opposition to funding Planned Parenthood, paid leave for new mothers and most prominently, his vote earlier this year opposing “equal pay for equal work.”

It was obvious as soon as Webber was one of only two Assembly members to push the “no” button that this was going to be a political problem for him.

The Republican is not shying away from the issue. In fact, he claims he supports “equal pay for equal work.”

Webber says he voted no on the bill because it was flawed. Webber gets support for this view from the New Jersey Law Journal, which noted in an editorial that the law in question actually calls for equal pay for “substantially similar” work. And this, the editorial argued, could lead to litigation and “bestow benefits largely on the lawyers litigating its meaning.”

Anyone who follows politics knows we have far too many examples of “feel good” legislation that really does not do anything to help those it is intended to help. That is Webber’s point here.

But the quandary for Webber is that a political campaign is not a law school discussion group.

His “no” vote on the equal pay law is part of the public record and is something that very easily translates into a campaign mailing or TV ad.

With all due respect, a Law Journal editorial is not going to fit on a bumper sticker.