At 2:38 in the afternoon, the President of the United States shared a post praising a campaign ad that used a childhood abuse survivor’s estranged mother against her. He called Dr. Amy Acton “defective,” described the ad as “very powerful,” and said it should win awards. I had already woken up feeling sick to my stomach over that ad, before Donald Trump decided to endorse it. Acton is a physician, a former state health director, and a woman who survived horrific abuse as a child. Her mother lost custody of her when she was twelve and stayed married to the man charged with raping her. Now Vivek Ramaswamy’s campaign is putting that mother in front of voters to call her own daughter a liar. After initially refusing to confirm responsibility for the ad, Ramaswamy acknowledged it was his, and his campaign plans to spend four million dollars promoting it across Ohio. This is what they are willing to do to win a governor’s race.
Instead of insisting that the ad come down, Trump praised the mother’s courage and told Ramaswamy to keep going. He attacked Mike DeWine for objecting, then described using the ad as “hitting pay dirt.” Almost two hours later, reporters on the White House South Lawn reminded him of Acton’s history and asked why her estranged mother should be believed. Trump’s answer was, “Well, I know nothing about it.” He kept returning to what the press would do if his own mother said something bad about him, as though that explained any of this. JD Vance told Republicans criticizing the ad to “stop whining.” DeWine urged that it be withdrawn, although he kept his endorsement of Ramaswamy. Jon Husted, Nikki Haley, and Nancy Mace also criticized it. Even within his own party, there are people willing to say this has crossed a line, and Trump chose to push further.
We are 12 days from the midterms, and our votes are going to say whether we accept this cruelty as normal. Acton still showed up on the campaign trail after everything they put her through this week. Asked about the ad, she spoke of a mother who struggled, and the neglect and abuse she and her brother experienced. If she can keep going, we can show up for her and for every survivor who watched the president use those names against one of them. We are voting against his authoritarian takeover and for people who have retained the basic human decency he keeps destroying. Between now and November 3, we need to make sure our friends, families, and neighbors understand what is at stake. None of us can sit this one out. We owe it to each other, to our country, and to the world waiting for us to fight our way back to the right side of history.
See the full story in the video.
We are living through a pivotal moment for our country, and my goal is to reach as many people as possible with clear, factual information about what is happening. The more people who understand what is unfolding, the better our chances of pushing back against chaos, cruelty, and corruption ahead of the midterms.
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I’ll see you tomorrow,
Heather
This video is based on my written post, available HERE, and based on the events of 10-22-2026.
This commentary represents my personal opinions and analysis of matters of public concern, informed by publicly available information. Any references to individuals constitute opinion and commentary protected under the First Amendment.
Sources:
Links to sources used in writing this article:
President Trump Gaggles with Press Upon Departure from the White House, Oct. 22, 2026: YouTube video
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/ramaswamy-ad-amy-acton-mother-trump/
https://www.cnn.com/2026/10/22/politics/amy-acton-response-mother-ad-vivek-ramaswamy
https://www.cnn.com/2026/10/20/politics/amy-acton-mother-video
https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2026-election/amy-acton-attack-ad-ohio-governors-race-rcna604601
