A super PAC that supports Gov. Ron DeSantis's (R-FL) bid for the Republican nomination for president attacked former President Donald Trump in a new ad that will air Tuesday.
The 30-second ad uses artificial intelligence to recreate Trump's voice to read social media posts the former president made about Gov. Kim Reynolds (R-IA) earlier in July, sources told Bloomberg. The ad then questions why Trump is attacking his party instead of Democrats.
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“I opened up the Governor position for Kim Reynolds, & when she fell behind, I ENDORSED her, did big Rallies, & she won,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “Now, she wants to remain ‘NEUTRAL.’ I don’t invite her to events!”
"The blatant use of AI to fabricate President Trump’s voice is a desperate attempt by Always Back Down and Jeff Roe to deceive the American public because they know DeSanctimonious’ campaign is on life support," said Chris LaCivita, a senior advisor for Trump's campaign, in a statement. "After losing big donors and slashing their staff, they have now outsourced their work to AI just like they would like to outsource American jobs to China."
The ad, which will cost seven figures, will air on Tuesday before Trump takes part in a town hall with Fox News host Sean Hannity. It is the first advertisement from Never Back Down that directly attacks the former president. It also comes on the heels of a similar 30-second ad from the Republican Accountability PAC, which is expected to air this week but was teased Friday.
"Donald Trump is attacking Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds on social media, cutting her out of campaign events, and taking credit for her success," the Republican Accountability PAC tweeted alongside the ad. "All because she hasn't endorsed him. Just more evidence that Donald Trump only cares about himself."
Reynolds has not endorsed any candidate ahead of the Iowa caucuses so far but has appeared at campaign stops in the state for most of the 2024 Republican hopefuls. Despite not taking a public stance on what candidate she favors, Reynolds and her policies have still enjoyed an 86% approval rating among Iowa Republicans, according to a poll in March.
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DeSantis, who has publicly acknowledged that he would consider Reynolds for vice president if he won the nomination and she was interested in the job, has described Reynolds as a "strong leader who knows how to ignore the chirping and get it done."
Reynolds recently said she is focused on her tenure as governor and is not currently looking to join DeSantis's or any other candidate's ticket to the White House.