Lincoln Project ad raises the question of how fathers of daughters can vote for Donald Trump
A powerful new commercial from The Lincoln Project asks the hard questions, including how fathers can choose Donald Trump, even if it means voting away their daughters’ rights and, potentially, even their lives.
As the 2024 Presidential election looms, women’s rights are at stake. Trump is seeking another term as President after his Supreme Court successfully overturned Roe v. Wade, sparking abortion bans in numerous states across the U.S. Given that Trump has bragged about overturning Roe v. Wade and his running mate, J. D. Vance, has openly called for a nationwide abortion ban, many fear that women’s reproductive rights will deteriorate further. Republican extremism has also threatened to take away women’s access to IVF and contraceptives, while Trump has suggested he’s open to states monitoring pregnant women.
The attack on women’s rights has already had grave consequences, as extreme abortion legislation has resulted in some women being denied life-saving medical care. Carmen Broesder recently recounted the harrowing story of how she was turned away from the ER three times while seeking a D&C procedure due to suffering a miscarriage. Doctors refused to complete the procedure for 19 days after she miscarried until she collapsed from severe blood loss, which nearly cost her life and left her with a lifelong heart condition. Her ordeal was far from an isolated incident and will become commonplace if abortion rights are further restricted. Parents planning on voting for Trump must honestly answer if they’re content with this potentially being their own daughters’ reality someday.
The Lincoln Project releases powerful, heartbreaking ad
The Lincoln Project is a political action committee founded by moderates and former GOP members who oppose Trump. During the 2020 and 2024 elections, the committee has worked to prevent the election of Trump or Trump loyalists to office. Its strategy often includes creating viral ads that spread the most vital and relevant messages to potential voters. Its most recent ad will have anyone capable of feeling empathy in tears.
The advertisement sees a pregnant woman crying in pain as she begins flatlining. In a voiceover, the dying woman speaks directly to her father, saying, “It didn’t need to end this way, Dad.” She notes how excited he was to be a grandfather and begins recounting all her greatest memories with her father throughout high school, graduation, college, and marriage. The woman thought she was the “most important thing in the world” to her father. However, it turned out Trump was more important to her father than her. Footage plays of a man warning that the abortion laws instigated by Trump’s destruction of Roe v. Wade are impossible to comply with, especially if you’re a dying woman. The woman notes her father knew what Trump would do but chose hate over his own daughter’s life.
The Lincoln Project ad is powerful because it doesn’t shy away from asking the hard questions. It forces fathers to answer the question, “Will you still vote for Donald Trump even though doing so could cost your daughter her life in the future?” It’s a question that all parents should ask, but especially fathers. Mothers who vote for Trump are often risking their lives, too, but what are men risking if they vote for Trump? In their minds, they have nothing to lose because their rights aren’t under attack, and they’ll fare just fine. However, what if we forced them to acknowledge that the same isn’t true for their daughters?
The only thing sadder than the Lincoln Project ad is that some fathers of daughters will watch it and feel nothing. After all, some fathers have already aligned themselves with Trump in the most cruel and cold ways. Lady Gaga’s father announced he was voting for Trump because Trump would allegedly lower prices. He publicly announced this despite knowing his daughter experienced a sexual assault that left her pregnant and that Vance has coldly advocated for forcing victims of rape and incest to give birth. Right-wing pundit Charlie Kirk, who has a young daughter, callously confirmed he would force his 10-year-old daughter to go through the trauma of labor if she was the victim of rape or incest.
The Lincoln Project’s purpose is twofold. For one, it has the potential to appeal to fathers’ by forcing them to answer if they’d care if the women being denied life-saving medical care were their daughters. If that answer is “yes,” it might have the power to sway them. However, if the answer is “no,” that tells others everything they need to know about Trump supporters.
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