Topeka ? Sen. Pat Roberts’ campaign released a new video ad Friday that immediately stirred controversy because of an audio clip that independent challenger Greg Orman says was doctored to misrepresent what he said.

The web-based ad, titled “The Pretender,” includes a series of video clips from the Kansas State Fair debate that are spliced together to show Orman saying five times in rapid succession that he agreed with Roberts on several issues.

In the final clip, Orman is seen and heard saying, “By the way, just so we’re clear …” and then his face disappears from the screen while the voice continues, “… I agree with Senator Roberts.” The video and audio are mixed as if to suggest that was one complete sentence in which the video fades away while the voice continues.

But a review of the audio of the Sept. 6 debate in Hutchinson reveals that what Orman really said in response to the question about Social Security was: “By the way, just so we’re clear, I agree that both chambers of Congress … are run in an overly partisan way.” He stumbled slightly over the word “Congress.”

The ad suggests that Orman is only pretending to hold conservative views that agree with Roberts.

It accuses Orman of really being a liberal Democrat, as evidenced by his earlier bid for the same Senate seat in 2008, when he briefly ran as a Democrat, and his campaign contributions to national Democrats such as President Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid.

The Orman campaign pointed out the manufactured quote in a statement issued shortly after the video was released.

“Only a politician who’s been in Washington for 47 years would attack someone else when they agree, and that’s exactly why the Senate and the Congress can’t get anything done,” said Orman spokesman Sam Edelen.

The ad is the first since Roberts brought in two national consultants to manage his campaign, including Chris La Civita and Corry Bliss, both of whom are known for running aggressive and often negative campaigns. La Civita is perhaps best known for his role as media adviser to Swift Boat Veterans, an independent group active in opposing Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry in 2004.

Corry Bliss, the new campaign spokesman, did not expressly deny that the sound bite was manufactured, but said the entire exchange shows Orman did agree with Roberts.

“Greg Orman calling anything, let alone this ad, ‘deceptive’ is laughable,” Bliss said. “The only deception is Greg Orman claiming to be anything but a phony politician that will say or do anything to win an election.”

The ad ends with another clip from the debate in which Roberts demands that Orman state publicly which party he would caucus with if he is elected. Orman is shown to stand silently at the podium and not respond to Roberts’ remarks.

What is not clear from the ad, though, is that Orman was not allowed to respond to that statement. It came at the end of Roberts’ rebuttal remarks to that same question about Social Security, and the format of the debate gave Roberts the final word on that question.

The next voice heard after Roberts’ challenge is that of the moderator saying, “We hate to end on that note, but we do need to get to the closing statements.”

Questioned by reporters after the debate, Orman repeated what he has said before in the campaign, that if either party emerges with a clear majority in the Senate, he will caucus with that party.

“And there is an opportunity, a possibility, that that we might have neither party with a majority in the Senate, and that would be just a great opportunity to hold both parties accountable for actually getting something done,” Orman said.

During the debate, Orman did agree with Roberts on a number of points. Both candidates said they opposed President Obama’s use of executive orders to manage immigration issues; that over-regulation by the federal government creates an uncertain business environment; that mandatory budget cuts known as “sequester” cuts have harmed the military; and that the Environmental Protection Agency should not extend clean water regulations to farm ponds.

Campaign finance records from the Federal Election Commission also show that in 2007 Orman donated $4,600 each to the campaigns of Obama and Clinton and $1,000 to Sen. Reid’s re-election campaign.