Democrats Seize on Trump’s ‘You’re Rich as Hell’ Remarks to Donors

An ad from the main super PAC backing Kamala Harris casts Donald Trump as a tycoon who will give handouts to the rich, and the vice president as the candidate of working people.

Share full article

The ad from Future Forward, a Democratic super PAC, shows a man called “Buddy M.” from Allentown, Pa., watching video of former President Donald J. Trump addressing his donors.

Future Forward, the main super PAC backing Kamala Harris’s presidential campaign, is running this 30-second ad on television in states including Arizona and North Carolina this week at a cost of roughly $18 million, according to AdImpact.

Here’s a look at the ad, its accuracy and its major takeaway.

On the Screen

The ad begins with an image of former President Donald J. Trump, slightly distorted by shadows, appearing to speak to wealthy supporters.

“I know about 20 of you and you’re rich as hell,” he says, according to subtitles that flash across the screen. The camera then cuts to a Black man watching Mr. Trump’s remarks on an iPad-like device and shaking his head.

After another image of Mr. Trump promising tax cuts flashes onscreen, the man introduces himself as “Buddy M.” from Allentown, Pa.

Buddy, pointedly declaring that he is “not rich as hell,” quickly establishes himself as a working- or middle-class American. The spot cuts between images of him — sitting in a wood-paneled living room, filling up a car at a gas station — and of fancily dressed people including Mr. Trump and his ally Elon Musk, the world’s richest man, who are separately hobnobbing in tuxedos.

As music soars, the spot cuts to images of Ms. Harris walking purposefully before American flags and greeting men wearing hard hats.

We are having trouble retrieving the article content.

Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.

Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.