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Chris Hayes slammed a controversial attack ad targeting Ohio Democratic gubernatorial candidate Amy Acton on Tuesday, calling it “one of the most despicable things I’ve seen in politics” and accusing Republicans of resorting to personal attacks as the midterm elections approach.
In the ad Acton’s mother, Donna Arthur, who has disappeared, calls her daughter a liar and urges voters not to elect her governor. Arthur disputes Acton’s accounts of her childhood, including his experience of homelessness.
“What neither she nor the makers of that ad mentioned is that that woman, Amy Acton’s birth mother, as Amy Acton calls her, has not spoken to her daughter since 1978,” Hayes said Tuesday on “All In With Chris Hayes.” “And that’s when she lost custody of her children, Acton and her brother, after years of documented abuse.
You can watch the “All In” segment yourself in the video below.
Acton has said she was removed from her mother’s custody at the age of 12 after her father accused her of sexually abusing her. Her brother, Phil Stearns, has also spoken publicly about the abuse they suffered as children.
Hayes argued that the ad was designed to get voters to question Acton’s account of her past without providing the context of her family history.
The video was first circulated on social media without identifying who made it or paid for it. Donald Trump Jr shared it online, writing, “Yikes, Ohio, watch this and think about what it means.”
Vivek Ramaswamy’s campaign did not initially identify himself as his representative, but a spokesman defended the ad’s message, calling Acton a “serial fabulist” and saying voters needed to know about the alleged dishonesty.
Hayes also criticized the campaign for not initially disclosing the ad’s sponsor, noting that it had spread through right-wing social media accounts rather than appearing as a standard television spot or digital campaign. He also noted that the Ramaswamy campaign did not deny that they were responsible.
“That ad is really one of the most ridiculous things I’ve seen in politics,” Hayes said. “It’s also completely par for the course for today’s Republican Party.”
He went on to say that it all started at the top with President Donald Trump’s constant attacks on Democrats, journalists and women.
“They are heading for disaster and the lies because their hopes of getting votes are dwindling with two weeks left,” he said.
“Can you imagine fear?” Hayes added. “Definitely the bottom of the barrel.”
