A hard-hitting television ad charges Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., with blocking climate and renewable energy bills that could cut money flowing to oil-producing nations with close ties to terrorism.

The liberal veterans advocacy group, VoteVets, poured $2 million into a dual national and state-based ad campaign targeting Republicans and Democrats alike.

The local ad, and the only one targeting a Western politician, features Iraq War veteran Benjamin Cossel, of Pine Bluffs, Wyo. Cossel puts it to Barrasso to “decide whose side he’s on” after noting that the Wyoming senator received $50,500 from the oil industry with direct operations in Iran, Libya, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Nigeria, and Algeria.

All told the senator has taken $398,700 from the energy and natural resource sector, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.

As expected, Barrasso shot back. A spokesperson told the Wyoming Tribune Eagle, “The liberal, out-of-state special interest group paying for this ad does not represent Wyoming.”

However, the crux of the problem isn’t political ideology but the complicated connections of climate change, energy extraction and national security. And the money trail behind it that pushes simplistic soundbites, obstructs legislation and stokes public fears about terrorism.

VoteVets said in a statement that “the campaign was launched days after the oil industry revealed that it spent $154 million lobbying Congress in 2009 — much of it in opposition to comprehensive energy legislation.”

Enter Barrasso who has long fought environmental policies to promote carbon reduction and extractive energy regulations from his perch on two key Senate committees: Energy and Natural Resources and Environment and Public Works.

“The fight to get off Middle East oil is a matter of life and death for those of us who serve this country,” said Jon Soltz, Iraq War Veteran and Chairman of VoteVets.org. “Every day Congress delays action is another day they are siding with oil companies and against our veterans,” continued Soltz.

The Barrasso ad will reportedly run 400 times on Casper and Cheyenne television stations. Hang on to your hats.

h/t Grist.org

While campaign finance laws may have dampened some of the political world’s Super Bowl frolicking, at least four lawmakers are going to the Super Bowl and most of them are apparently using the event to host fundraisers, where they can collect campaign contributions and party with lobbyists and big donors over mojitos or martinis.

We’re qualifying this information with the word “apparently” because we learned from our Super Bowl Blitz that politicians don’t like to talk about their Super Bowl plans. ProPublica and more than 15 news organizations, local reporters, and a bunch of die-hard constituents contacted almost three-quarters of Congress and got answers from at least half of Congress in little more than a week. We and our readers asked two simple questions: Did you go to the Super Bowl last year? Are you going this year?

After repeated calls from our volunteers and our reporters, we confirmed that Sen. Evan Bayh, D-Ind., and Reps. Mike Pence, R-Ind., Steve Scalise R-La., whose teams are in the game, are going, as is Rep. John Conyers, D-Mich., whose team is not. Getting their offices to confirm news reports about the fundraisers several of them are said to be holding was another matter altogether. Although politicians are renowned attention-seekers, with press operations that publicize just about everything they do, their spokespeople disappeared from the radar scope when our questions shifted to parties for lobbyists and big donors.

Other members may also be heading to the game. Rep. Greg Meeks, D-N.Y., went last year but his staff was “unsure” about this year and hasn’t returned our recent phone calls. Rep. Kendrick Meek, D-Fla., a current Senate candidate in whose district the game is being played, “very likely will be going,” according to his press secretary. Current Florida Sen. George LeMieux’s office said several days ago that he had “not decided,” and nobody has not returned our subsequent calls.

So, what’s next? The Super Bowl Blitz was the first of a two-part effort to figure out which members of Congress are going to the Super Bowl and how they got their tickets. Reporters Marcus Stern and Sebastian Jones are flying to Miami today, where they’ll try to see which lobbyists and big donors are rubbing shoulders with the lawmakers at those fundraisers. We’ll let you know what they find on Monday.

Just in case a member of Congress slipped through our survey’s cracks, (we’re still waiting to hear back from about 100 of them) we’ve taken a page out of Deadspin’s playbook. We’re asking readers attending the Super Bowl to be on the lookout for members of Congress and other VIP public officials. If you get one in your sights, snap a pic and send it to us — along with details on where and when the pic was taken and your contact info (in case we need to follow up with you). The wider the shot, the better.

Now, that’s the big project update. Some of you have asked us to discuss other (amusing and interesting) findings of our reader-powered Super Bowl Blitz.

Much to our dismay, several congressional offices refused to answer our volunteers’ questions, saying that office policy forbids participation in “surveys.” Included in this list are Reps. Jane Harman, D-Calif., Baron P. Hill, D-Ind., and Kurt Schrader, D-Ore. Other offices—like those of Rep. Rush Holt, D-N.J., and Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif.—said they don’t disclose information about the congressperson’s (personal) schedule.