Advocacy Group Launches Campaign Against Trump Over Abortion Remarks
DES MOINES, IOWA — Advocacy group And To The Republic is targeting conservative voters in Iowa with a warning about former President Trump and his criticism of six-week abortion bans.
First reported by The Hill, the $550,000 ad campaign will feature snail mail, digital and television ads customized with text messaging. The nonprofit has been supporting Governor Ron DeSantis’ presidential bid since February.
“PROTECTING INNOCENT LIFE”
“Protecting innocent life is never a terrible thing or a mistake and that is why it is vital we applaud and thank Governor Kim Reynolds for protecting life,” said Tori Sachs, executive director of And To The Republic.
“Conservative governors around the country are leading the battle against the radical left and they should be applauded, not attacked, for their policies dedicated to saving the lives of innocent babies,” Sachs added.
Last month, Trump called Florida’s six-week ban on abortions “a terrible thing and a terrible mistake,” drawing the ire of conservative and pro-life leaders across the country. Iowa’s Governor Kim Reynolds responded swiftly on X, reminding voters that it’s never a terrible thing to protect life.
It’s never a “terrible thing” to protect innocent life. I’m proud of the fetal heartbeat bill the Iowa legislature passed and I signed in 2018 and again earlier this year.
— Kim Reynolds (@KimReynoldsIA) September 19, 2023
DeSantis applauded Reynolds and other state governors for “promoting a culture of life” despite disparaging remarks from the former president.
TRUMP PAC COUNTERS
As Iowans prepare to caucus shortly after the new year, DeSantis and other GOP presidential hopefuls are intensifying their focus on the early-voting state. On Friday, Make America Great Again, the super PAC backing Trump, will begin airing negative ads against DeSantis.
“Donald Trump is spending a million dollars attacking me in Iowa,” DeSantis said this morning on the Hugh Hewitt Show. “Haley’s Super PAC is spending big money to attack me in Iowa. You don’t do that unless you view me as the threat.”
“If we weren’t doing well, we would not be the focal point of the attacks,” DeSantis added. “And so I think what we see in Iowa is very positive. We’ve got 20,000 already committed to caucus… most of the vast majority of voters haven’t even made up their mind yet.”
Never Back Down, the super PAC backing DeSantis, will also begin running ads in November targeting former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley who has recently tied DeSantis in an NBC News/Des Moines Register/Mediacom Iowa poll released Monday.