COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — President Donald Trump said Thursday that Vivek Ramaswamy, the Republican nominee for Ohio governor, should keep running a controversial ad featuring the estranged mother of Democratic opponent Amy Acton, posting on social media that it was “hitting pay dirt.”
asserted
it → say → dirt
Trump also denounced Ohio Republican Gov. Mike DeWine, who criticized the ad as “deeply, deeply troubling” earlier in the day.
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who → denounce → day
Acton previously served in DeWine’s administration as a health official.
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Acton → serve → official
Her mother lost custody of Acton and her brother after her husband — the children’s stepfather — was indicted for raping Acton.
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husband → lose → Acton
“He strongly suggested that Vivek should, ‘take down the Ad,’” Trump wrote.
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Trump → suggest → Ad
“He probably wants a Dumocrat to win, and certainly doesn’t want someone who will do a much better job than he is capable of doing.
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he → want → job
I suggested, on the other hand, that Vivek should keep it up, and let everyone listen to the mother of a defective, dishonest, and incapable Candidate, explain how the daughter is a DISASTER who, uncontrollably, lies, cheats, and steals!”
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who → suggest → Candidate
At a gathering with reporters at the Ohio Statehouse, DeWine recalled the painful experiences of rape victims he dealt with as a county prosecutor and state attorney general.
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he → recall → prosecutor
“It’s wrong to run this ad,” he said.
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he → ’ → ad
“And, even at this late time — my wife, Fran, saw the ad just run this morning on TV — I would just urge the Ramaswamy campaign to take this down.”
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I → see → this
The term-limited DeWine’s remarks place him at odds with Ramaswamy, whom he has endorsed.
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he → limit → whom
The biotech entrepreneur and former presidential candidate plans to spend $4 million to broadcast it online and on television.
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entrepreneur → plan → television
DeWine stops short of pulling his endorsement
But the governor stopped short of pulling his backing of the Republican for now.
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governor → stop → Republican
DeWine recalled a previous line of attack by the Acton campaign had mentioned Ramaswamy’s mother and said that also was wrong — “family members have always historically been off limits” — though he noted it was never used in a multimillion-dollar ad campaign.
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it → recall → campaign
That critique from the summer cited an investigative report into Geetha Ramaswamy’s role at a pharmaceutical company run by her son, who Acton and Democrats described as “hiring his own mother to manipulate clinical trial data.”
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Acton → cite → data
The Ramaswamy campaign called those claims “slanderous” and said he’s being held to a different standard than Acton and other Democrats who have attacked Republicans’ families.
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who → call → families
“Governor DeWine is correct that the first and only candidate to attack the mother of her opponent in this race was Amy Acton,” spokesperson Connie Luck said in a statement, adding, “We refuse to accept the media’s double standards.”
Ohio Republicans divided over the ad
By chiming in, DeWine has entered the fray of a growing rift among Ohio Republicans over the advertisement — as both the governor’s race and a race for U.S. Senate appear far tighter than expected in a state Donald Trump won handily three times.
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Trump → attack → state
The video features Acton’s birth mother, Donna Arthur, calling her “a liar” and insinuating she has mental health issues.
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she → feature → issues
Acton, Ohio’s COVID-19-era health director, has made no secret of facing homelessness and abuse as a child.
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Acton → make → child
Arthur lost custody of her children after their stepfather, Arthur’s husband, was indicted on a charge of rape involving Acton.
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stepfather → lose → Acton
Acton’s campaign on Tuesday posted a video of her brother, who supported her backstory about living in a tent and being abused.
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who → post → tent
Republican Vice President JD Vance, an Ohio native son, expressed disgust during an Ohio campaign swing Wednesday with Republicans “whining” about the ad as low and in poor taste.
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Republicans → express → taste
But Republican U.S. Sen. Jon Husted, DeWine’s former lieutenant governor — running in a tight retention race against Democrat Sherrod Brown — has said he would not have run the ad, as has Republican Secretary of State Frank LaRose, who is running for state auditor.
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who → run → auditor
Another influential Ohio Republican, former U.S. Rep. Jim Renacci, posted a lengthy essay on X overnight, suggesting that “the floor may have just fallen out from under the Republican campaign for Ohio Governor” and urging every Republican to distance themselves from it.
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floor → post → it
Amid the turmoil, Ohio Republican Party Chairman Alex Triantafilou posted what sounded like a warning, or a threat.
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what → post → warning
“The final days of a tough campaign are always the best time to find out who is really with you and who just posts and pretends,” he wrote.
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he → find → you
“Yes—we are keeping score.”
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we → keep → score
The quote was followed by a winking-eye emoji.
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quote → follow → emoji
Ad has faced bipartisan rebukes, support in conservative media
The ad is also dividing Republicans nationally.
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ad → face → Republicans
Nikki Haley, who sparred with Ramaswamy during the 2024 Republican presidential primary over the personal nature of his attacks, called him “a bad guy” in a social media post Tuesday.
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who → spar → post
“It’s a shame he continues to get away with it,” she wrote.
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she → ’ → it
At the same time, Media Matters for America, a left-leaning media watchdog group, has reported that many within the national conservative media are promoting and praising the ad.
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many → lean → ad
Ramaswamy’s campaign manager, Jonathan Ewing, characterized it as “a campaign-ending moment for Amy Acton.”
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manager → characterize → Acton
Wayne Allyn Root, of Gateway Pundit, called it “absolutely hilarious” and Daily Wire host Michael Knowles described it as “brilliant.”
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Knowles → call → it
Police and court records show Cledith Arthur was arrested and charged with the rape of Acton in July 1978, when she was 12, after her biological father lodged a formal complaint against him.
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father → show → him
The abuse allegedly happened from December 1976 to April 1978.
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abuse → happen → April
Cledith Arthur failed to show for a court appearance and became a fugitive.
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Arthur → fail → appearance
Donna Arthur remained married to him until his death in 2004.
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Arthur → remain → 2004
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