Gabriel Gomez

Republican candidate for the U.S. Senate Gabriel Gomez, center, gives a thumbs up as he takes to the stage next to his daughter Olivia, 13, left, before addressing an audience with a victory speech at a watch party, in Cohasset, Mass., Tuesday, April 30, 2013. Gomez won his primary bid for the Republican nomination to contest a U.S. Senate seat, defeating Republican hopefuls Michael Sullivan and Dan Winslow. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

A new ad released by the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee attacks Republican Senate candidate Gabriel Gomez for his stances on tax policy and health care.

The ad comes as Democrats nationally are launching an all-out effort to help Democratic U.S. Rep. Edward Markey win the Massachusetts U.S. Senate seat, with major ad buys and national surrogates flooding Massachusetts.

Politico reports that the ad is part of a $700,000 ad buy that national Democrats are making on Markey's behalf. The ad buy comes as Democratic President Barack Obama, First Lady Michelle Obama, Democratic National Committee Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz and Democratic Congressman Xavier Becerra have all visited or are planning visits to Massachusetts. (Wasserman Schultz will be in Springfield on Sunday for a get out the vote summit.)

Gomez responded that Markey’s campaign is “failing” and Democrats are panicking. “Congressman Markey cannot defeat me by himself, so he relies on the Democratic machine in Washington and outside special interest lobbyists to prop him up,” Gomez said in a statement. “That is why the national Democratic machine is going to try smearing me and buy this election.”

The latest Democratic ad shows a middle aged couple concerned about their retirement. “Gabriel Gomez supports protecting special tax breaks for corporations and multi-millionaires like himself,” the ad states. The ad goes on to say that Gomez supports cuts to Medicare, eliminating coverage of mammograms and preventive cancer screenings, raising prescription drug costs, and raising the retirement age. “Gabriel Gomez puts himself ahead of us,” the ad’s announcer states.

The claim about taxes comes from a Springfield Republican story detailing Gomez and Markey's positions on taxes. In fact, Gomez has said he wants to close corporate loopholes while lowering the tax rate. But the Democrats are referring to Gomez's statements that he would not raise taxes on anyone, including the wealthy, and that he would move to a territorial tax system, in which only profits earned in the U.S. are taxed in the U.S. Gomez has also told The Republican that he would gradually raise the retirement age for Social Security and Medicare for future retirees.

The comments regarding health care refer to Gomez’s opposition to Democratic President Barack Obama’s health care reform law, the Affordable Care Act, which, among other provisions, requires insurers to cover preventive services with no co-pay. Gomez says health care coverage should be a matter for states to address, not the federal government.

National Republicans have also been helping Gomez, although to a lesser extent. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, of Kentucky, and Florida Sen. Marco Rubio sent out fundraising emails on Gomez's behalf, while former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani and Arizona Sen. John McCain have campaigned with him. The Massachusetts Republican Party recently spent $400,000 on a pro-Gomez ad buy. Democrats have charged that the money for that ad buy came from the national Republican Party, and Republican officials have declined to comment.