Not only has Trump defended a controversial ad by Ohio gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy featuring the estranged mother of Amy Acton, he said Ramaswamy should “look upstairs and say: ‘Thank you, God, very much. I appreciate it.” The ad shows Acton’s birth mother call her own daughter a liar, urging voters not to elect her to office. However, there is no mention of the appalling backstory: Acton’s stepfather, Cledith Arthur, was charged with raping her when she was a child while married to Acton’s mother, who chose to remain with her husband, fleeing the state to avoid charges. Several prominent Republicans have condemned the ad, urging Ramaswamy, who is behind in the polls, to take it down, including the current Republican Governor Mike DeWine.
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