Vice President JD Vance voiced his support for Ohio Republican gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy this week, expressing disdain for what he called "whining" from other Republicans regarding a controversial campaign advertisement. The ad in question targets Democratic opponent Amy Acton and features her estranged mother, Donna Arthur. Vance’s remarks were made during a campaign rally in Cincinnati on Wednesday.
The advertisement shows Donna Arthur repeatedly calling Acton a liar. Court documents reveal Acton was removed from her mother’s custody in the late 1970s after her stepfather, Cledith Arthur, faced charges of raping Acton when she was 12 years old. Following his release on bond, the Arthurs reportedly fled the state.
Vice President Vance stated he was "a little bit disgusted" by Republicans complaining more about the advertisement than about the actions of congressional and other Democrats. He delivered a clear message to fellow elected Republicans: if they truly believe in their stated convictions, they should "stop whining about an advertisement and go win the race in 13 days," according to comments made at the rally.
Ramaswamy’s campaign initially issued a statement insisting that Ramaswamy wanted the election to focus on how to solve rising costs, and referred to Acton as a "serial fabulist," without claiming responsibility for the ad's production. Later that same day, Ramaswamy acknowledged his campaign produced the ad, again stating his preference for the race to be about "substantive issues." His campaign informed Axios it plans to spend $4 million running the ad statewide. Ramaswamy has defended the advertisement by blaming Acton for refusing to debate him.
In response, Acton’s campaign released an ad featuring her younger brother, Phil Stearns. Stearns criticized Ramaswamy for attempting to score political points from the childhood abuse they both suffered, stating, "Shame on Vivek," and asserting that Ramaswamy is "not fit to lead."
At the Cincinnati event, Vance also claimed that Ramaswamy has been called a murderer in some advertisements. The specific ad Vance referenced was not clear, and requests for clarification sent to his press contact and Ramaswamy’s campaign received no response. Ramaswamy later shared Vance's claim on social media, describing it as "hard facts." While ads produced by Acton’s campaign and a Democratic Governors Association Super PAC backing her have criticized Ramaswamy’s tenure as a pharmaceutical executive for publicly praising an ineffective Alzheimer’s drug, Ohio Capital Journal was unable to identify any ads that suggested Ramaswamy is a murderer.
Earlier on Wednesday morning, Vance joined Department of Justice officials in Cincinnati to announce indictments against 40 individuals. These individuals are allegedly connected to defrauding the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), formerly known as food stamps, of $42 million.
The U.S. Department of Justice reported that the largest share of the alleged fraud involved Jorag Yaseen and Rami Kanaan, who allegedly stole $29.7 million from the program. They reportedly used stolen account information from Ohio and other states to conduct false transactions at their Illinois stores. Vance highlighted a case out of Atlanta concerning Merecedes Reshard New, known as Shawty Dred on social media, who is connected to $4.4 million in fraud against the SNAP program. According to a DOJ press release, New allegedly operated for six years and controlled over 350 fraudulent SNAP accounts before his arrest last week. Vance stated that New was "quite literally taking food from the mouths of children, so that he can enrich himself," and emphasized that "SNAP exists to help hungry children eat. It does not exist to provide private jets to a guy like Shawty Dred."
Beyond tackling fraud, the administration has also made significant changes to SNAP through the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. These changes are expected to lead to reduced payments, primarily affecting Ohio’s urban counties. States are now required to shoulder a greater share of the financial burden based on error rates. U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins praised these changes in July 2025, noting they would help "tackl(e) the fraud and waste that has run rampant" in the program. While Ohio lawmakers agreed to cover some of the shortfall, the method of divvying up funds has resulted in multi-million dollar shortfalls in Cuyahoga, Franklin, and Hamilton counties.
