To the Republicans who will vote in the 2016 presidential primaries, the only thing worse than a Democrat is a Democrat pretending to be a Republican to win their votes.
At least, that’s the message former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush is sending with his campaign’s latest attack ad.
As businessman Donald Trump soars in every major state and national poll, Bush is trying to tear Trump down with a series of damning quotes from the real-estate magnate’s own mouth. Bush’s new attack ad hits Trump as a closet Democrat trying to hide from his past, and the evidence is pretty damning.
For those keeping score at home, here are the revelations about Trump found in this ad.
- He lives in New York, not Iowa, and his views reflect his geographic location. (He probably still enjoys corn, though.)
- He is pro-choice.
- He supports universal health care.
- He wants to raise taxes on high-income Americans.
- He supported the 2009 stimulus package.
- He once said that former Secretary of State and current Democratic frontrunner Hillary Clinton would do a good job negotiating with Iranians over a nuclear deal.
- He called Clinton “a terrific woman.”
- He has known Bill and Hillary Clinton “for years” and really likes them.
- He once said that he identified more as a Democrat, despite being a registered Republican at the time.
The ad starts with the title “Liberal Things That Trump Says” before crossing off the last word and replacing it with “Believes,” in a clear attempt to assert that these aren’t just stale Trumpisms, but rather his current views.
In a reminder of Iowa’s all-important status as the first caucus state, the video rewinds to Trump’s first comment about living in New York and having different views than Iowans.
A Monmouth University poll released on Monday found that Trump and neurosurgeon Ben Carson were tied at 23 percent in Iowa. Bush, meanwhile, trailed Trump, Carson, former HP CEO Carly Fiorina, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), and Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker.
Trump posted an Instagram attack ad on Monday connecting Bush’s compassion for undocumented immigrants with a string of murders by several of those immigrants.
Photo via The World Affairs Council Philadelphia/Flickr (CC BY 2.0)
