Many Democrats are criticizing their own party for meddling in Republican primary elections to promote candidates backed by former President Donald Trump.

The criticism comes after reports that the Democratic Governors Association (DGA) and the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) made substantial ad buys to support more conservative Republican candidates endorsed by Trump in primaries. The DGA promoted Dan Cox, the eventual Republican nominee for governor of Maryland, while the DCCC reportedly made a substantial ad buy to promote a primary challenger to Republican Rep. Peter Meijer of Michigan. one of ten Republicans who voted to impeach Trump after the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the Capitol building.

“I’m disgusted that hard-earned money intended to support Democrats is being used to boost Trump-endorsed candidates, particularly the far-right opponent of one of the most honorable Republicans in Congress, @RepMeijer,” Democratic Rep. Dean Phillips of Minnesota posted on Twitter.

I’m disgusted that hard-earned money intended to support Democrats is being used to boost Trump-endorsed candidates, particularly the far-right opponent of one of the most honorable Republicans in Congress, @RepMeijer. Another reason to reform our broken campaign finance system. https://t.co/hhKYcLVmxk

— Dean Phillips (@deanbphillips) July 26, 2022

“Democrats, who want you to believe they are dedicated to protecting democracy, are meddling in a primary to oust one of the few Republicans who voted to impeach Trump after Jan 6^th,” former Democratic congressional candidate Krystal Ball tweeted.

Democrats, who want you to believe they are dedicated to protecting democracy, are meddling in a primary to oust one of the few Republicans who voted to impeach Trump after Jan 6th. https://t.co/OSrlHWRTew

— Krystal Ball (@krystalball) July 26, 2022

Other Democrats also called out the decision in interviews with media outlets, with some pointing out the risks involved in such meddling.

“I think it’s always a bad idea to let people win a primary who could be extremely dangerous if they won,” Democratic state Sen. Lou D’Allesandro of New Hampshire told Fox News. “And believe me, in the political world of today, anything can happen and usually does.”

“I think it’s very dangerous and potentially very risky to elevate people who are hostile to democracy,” Democratic strategist Howard Wolfson told The Washington Post. “Either this is a crisis moment or it isn’t. And if it is — which it is — you don’t play cute in a crisis.”

Democratic Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney of New York, the chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, defended the practice.

“I think sometimes it does make sense,” he said during a Tuesday appearance on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe.”

Maloney, Ball, D’Allesandro, Phillips and Wolfson, as well as the DCCC and DGA, did not immediately respond to requests for comment from the Daily Caller News Foundation.

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