Future Forward, the main super PAC backing Kamala Harris’s presidential campaign, is running this 30-second ad on television in states including Pennsylvania, Michigan and Georgia. The ad began airing Monday night at a cost of $1.8 million as of Wednesday morning, according to AdImpact.
Here’s a look at the ad, its accuracy and its major takeaway.
On the Screen
The ad begins with a white man, Steven, introducing himself as a steelworker in a distinctive Western Pennsylvania accent. In the opening shots, he is wearing work clothes and then a hat from the brand Carhartt, known for its workwear and outdoor clothing — apparel that signals his blue-collar roots. The spot includes a scene of him walking across a farm, where he says he grew up, and a shot of him speaking in front of a wall chockablock with tools, cues that he speaks with authority from rural America.
The ad then cuts to a clip of former President Donald J. Trump speaking at a campaign rally in Pennsylvania and shaking hands with Elon Musk, the richest man in the world. Next up are images of Mr. Musk in white tie and Mr. Trump in black tie at fancy events, as “Donald Trump for billionaires” flashes across the screen.
Another image shows Mr. Trump pumping his fists in the air as he stands atop a stairway outside his plane, before the ad shifts to discussing Ms. Harris.
“Kamala Harris for the working class,” reads text displayed over images of the vice president, including one that shows her shaking hands with a man in a construction hat.
“Kamala Harris — make billionaires pay their fair share,” the text continues, over another image of her speaking with workers outside.
After another image of Mr. Musk laughing, Steven closes with a direct-to-camera declaration that he is supporting Ms. Harris, and another picture of him in what appears to be orange work clothes.
“Kamala Harris: for workers, not billionaires,” the text on the screen says as the ad concludes with an image of Ms. Harris with an American flag in the background.
The Script
Narrator
“I’m a steelworker. I grew up right here on a little family farm. Trump was here campaigning with Elon Musk. Now there’s a prime example of who he keeps close.
“Donald Trump cares about his billionaire friends. He’s just going to turn around and give them more tax breaks. But Kamala Harris is fighting for the working class. She’ll make billionaires pay their fair share. That way working people get a fair shot.
“Elon Musk is voting for his money, and I’m voting for mine. And I’m voting for Kamala Harris.”
Accuracy
Mr. Trump supports extending the 2017 tax cuts, which included tax benefits for the ultrarich, though those cuts also benefited middle-class Americans. He has also proposed eliminating taxes on Social Security income and tips.
Ms. Harris does support raising taxes on the wealthiest Americans. She has also proposed an expanded child tax credit and tax cuts meant to spur home construction, along with a first-time home-buyer credit.
The Takeaway
Polls show that Ms. Harris is struggling with men broadly — and white working-class men have posed a particularly difficult challenge for her party in the Trump era.
Steven, the narrator, appears to fit into all three of those categories. That may give him credibility with some blue-collar voters as he argues that Mr. Trump would undermine their economic interests while enriching wealthy Americans like himself.
Democrats long embraced the idea that they were the party of the working class.
But as education level has emerged as perhaps the central fault line in American politics, with college-educated voters flocking to the Democratic Party amid Mr. Trump’s rise while the party struggles with voters without college degrees, that argument has become harder to make.
This ad, part of a series of economy-focused testimonials from Future Forward, tries to reopen the door to some of those voters.
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