DNC Calls Trump An ‘Anti-Union Scab’ In Labor Day Billboard Ads

LOADING ERROR LOADING Democrats will try to shine a spotlight on GOP presidential candidate Donald Trump’s record on workers’ rights by calling Trump a “scab” as the Labor Day holiday signals the unofficial start of the fall campaign season. The Democratic National Committee is set to display 19 digital billboards in the swing states of Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania on Monday as its first paid media buy to kick the season off, a Democratic adviser told HuffPost exclusively. Advertisement The billboards, in English and Spanish, will show an unflattering picture of Trump’s face next to the caption “Trump’s an anti-union scab!” and will appear in a mix of high-traffic and other locations in those swing states. “He has proven over and over again that he does not care about working Americans, and if he regains the Oval Office, he will answer only to his big-dollar friends and donors,” said DNC spokesperson Maddy Mundy. The buy is not big by presidential campaign standards, but it shows Democrats’ intent to remind voters of Trump’s anti-union record, according to Brad Woodhouse, a senior adviser to the DNC. “We were really kind of channeling Shawn Fain with that choice,” Woodhouse joked, referring to Fain, who heads the United Auto Workers, wearing a T-shirt that called Trump a “scab” during his speech at the party’s national convention recently. A scab, in union parlance, is someone who doesn’t respect a picket line and instead walks through it. Advertisement “And Labor Day’s a good opportunity to lift that up,” Woodhouse said. Shawn Fain, president of the United Automobile Workers, shows off his “Trump is a scab” T-shirt during the 2024 Democratic National Convention in Chicago on Aug. 19, 2024. In addition to weakening the power of unions during his presidency, he praised billionaire Elon Musk for firing striking workers, crossed a picket line in 2004 and held an event that purported to be in support of striking UAW workers but where almost no one reporters interviewed was an actual union member. Woodhouse called the billboard buys a “message bracketing opportunity,” meaning the signs are meant to convey a rival message to the one pushed by Trump’s campaign and might garner media interest for separate stories as well. To determine where to place the billboards, Democrats considered the likelihood of a campaign event being held nearby, the potential route of a Trump motorcade that could draw people to where they might see the billboards, and whether the spots see high traffic. And this is kind of a small part of being everywhere,” Woodhouse said. For example, the DNC was able to put a message about IVF treatments on billboards near a Trump event on Friday after he said Thursday that he supported the government paying for the treatments directly or requiring they be covered by insurance. Woodhouse said the entire changeover, from art and message production to legal clearances, took only a few hours and was only possible because digital billboards are so flexible. While billboards don’t cost as much or seem as sexy as TV and internet ads, Woodhouse said, they can be important. Support Free Journalism Consider supporting HuffPost starting at $2 to help us provide free, quality journalism that puts people first. We are sincerely grateful for readers like you who help us ensure that we can keep our journalism free for everyone. The stakes are high this year, and our 2024 coverage could use continued support. We are sincerely grateful for readers like you who help us ensure that we can keep our journalism free for everyone. The stakes are high this year, and our 2024 coverage could use continued support. – This Summarize was created by Neural News AI (V1). Source: https://www.huffpost.com/entry/dnc-calls-trump-scab-labor-day-billboard_n_66d21ee4e4b013957161cda7