Latino group — not conservatives — behind new anti-Trump ads

Washington Post

By Ed O’Keefe

September 11, 2015

Latino group — not conservatives — behind new anti-Trump ads 

When news leaked this week of plans to quietly produce videos attacking Republican presidential front runner Donald Trump, some thought that rival conservatives could be behind the project.

They're not.

As The Washington Post first reported, an unknown group was planning to film a “smear video” about Trump featuring actors of Hispanic or Asian backgrounds solemnly reading short lines against a white background. Word of the production came as organizations including the Club for Growth, a top conservative group, have started reaching out to GOP donors in hopes of building a multi-million dollar ad campaign against Trump.

But this mysterious video project was the work of Democrats, not Republicans. The Latino Victory Project -- co-founded by Democratic National Committee chairman Henry Munoz and the actress Eva Longoria -- paid for the production of the ads, which surfaced in English and Spanish on Friday.

As promised, the videos feature actors reading lines said by Trump and other Republican presidential hopefuls, including former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush and Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal.

Cristóbal J. Alex, president of the Latino Victory Project, officially announced the project on Friday, saying in a statement that "Latinos are disgusted by the outrageous claims made by 2016 presidential hopefuls, who are trying to marginalize our community for their own gains. If this is what the candidates are saying, what policies will they put in place if elected? Our community has the power to decide the election, and we need to make sure that our voices are heard so that our leaders reflect our values."

The group said that the new ads are the start of a sustained advertising and mobilization campaign against GOP presidential hopefuls who use offensive rhetoric when discussing immigration and immigrants.

The ad begins with text on screen: "Republicans are talking. #LatinosListen."

Actors repeat Trump's assertions that undocumented immigrants from Mexico are "rapists" and "criminals."

Another man repeats the phrase "anchor babies," a term considered offensive by many Hispanics that Trump used to describe the practice of undocumented immigrants who enter the United States with the sole intent of giving birth to a child who will earn American citizenship. In this case, the actor is referring to Bush, who has defended the term even while denouncing caustic rhetoric used by many Republicans when discussing immigration reform.

"Happy to use the phrase," says another actor, referring to Jindal's defense of the same term.

Later, a series of actors help complete the following statement: "If we don't stand up, who will? No one. I'm registering to protect my family. My community. My future."

LVP plans to spend $50,000 to launch the ad campaign, which will air initially Sept. 13-15 on TV stations in Colorado and Nevada. The ads will also air on "targeted online publications," the group said. An expansion of the ad campaign into other states will come later.

Munoz and Longoria are prominent Democratic activists and fundraisers who founded LVP to serve as a national activist organization and cultivator of Latino political talent. It actively campaign in recent years for passage of bipartisan comprehensive immigration reform.

For more information, go to:  www.beverlyhillsimmigrationlaw.com