In the fast-paced news cycle, it’s easy for a scandal to escape notice. But this one hit home. It involves serious crime, childhood trauma, and what it means to be truly conservative.
It began with an ad by Ohio Republican gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy showing the biological mother of his Democratic opponent, Dr. Amy Acton. Donna Arthur called Acton a “liar” who “lies about her past.” Specifically, she cited Acton’s descriptions of her living conditions as a child.
But the ad did not mention that Arthur has had no contact with her daughter since she was 12. As the Wall Street Journal reported, “Acton’s stepfather, Cledith Arthur, was indicted by an Ohio grand jury in 1978 on a rape charge in connection with the alleged abuse of Acton. He pleaded not guilty. He and Acton’s mother then left the state and he never stood trial. He died more than two decades ago.”
Ramaswamy’s ad did not specifically invoke the sexual abuse allegations. But it introduced a figure into the campaign who has no place being there. Arthur lacks standing to weigh in on what her biological daughter is like. By her own choice, she fled with an indicted abuser and abandoned her vulnerable child.
“There’s no low that my opponent won’t go to,” Acton said in response to the ad.
Here in West Texas, I prosecute cases involving child sexual abuse. I announced a conviction just the other day, and discussed it in my latest op-ed for the Houston Chronicle.
Through this work, I see the failure of parents to protect their children — often from step-parents or their mothers’ boyfriends. It takes enormous courage for a child to report what has happened to them.
No child wants to be accused of ruining their family. Every child knows that by speaking out, they risk being called liars and facing even worse abuse. When they speak out, they should get the help and support they deserve.
I also speak with adult survivors, and see that the trauma never fully goes away. All people deserve the space and grace to heal throughout their lives, and to process their histories in the ways that are best for them.
No one who may have enabled an abuser should be used as a political pawn. The Ramaswamy ad is cruel, and should be beneath either political party.
Ramaswamy says he would be “the most conservative Governor in Ohio’s history.” When did this become the act of a conservative? I consider myself an actual conservative, committed to principles like personal liberty, small government, and fiscal sanity. But these days, people presenting themselves as stalwarts of the right are engaging in acts of hatred and desperation.
It’s been good to see bipartisan condemnation of Ramaswamy’s ad, including from Ohio’s Republican Gov. Mike DeWine. But it’s also no surprise that Ramaswamy is standing by it, as are President Donald Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance. They insist it’s about Acton lying, nothing more. But by erasing context about the woman speaking, the ad itself is misleading voters.
None of this means Democrats have all the answers. I ran for local office on a Republican ticket, but I join nearly half the voter base in identifying as an independent.
Ramaswamy might think generating outrage will jumpstart a struggling campaign. It won’t. This ad belongs in the political gutter — a textbook example of winning attention by sacrificing human decency.