Donald Trump Attack Ads in Iowa Trashed by Conservatives: 'This Won't Fly'

An alleged Iowa political campaign ad which criticizes Donald Trump's previous pro-LGBTQ+ comments has been condemned by conservative figures.

The ad, first reported by the Bleeding Heartland blog, describes the former president as a "transgender trailblazer" for expressing support for transgender women to compete in Miss Universe competitions. Bleeding Heartland, which describes itself as a progressive, community blog for Iowa, said that the ad was mailed to some households in the Hawkeye State.

The ad noted that Trump held an event at his Mar-a-Lago resort in December 2022 in which he described how he is "fighting for the gay community" at the gala for the Log Cabin Republicans, the largest GOP organization representing LGBTQ+ people.

The ad appeared aimed at creating a negative view of Trump, the front-runner for the nomination, among Republican voters in Iowa, which will hold the first-in-the-nation GOP presidential primary caucus on January 15, 2024.

While the flyer touches on the same lines of attacks that featured in a controversial ad from fellow GOP 2024 hopeful Ron DeSantis, the Iowa ad does not come from the Florida's governor's campaign team. The advertisement states it was paid for by the Advancing Our Vales group, which was registered as a non-profit entity on June 27, reported Bleeding Heartland.

Newsweek has not been able to verify the content of the ads or where they were allegedly mailed to. Bleeding Heartland said they were provided by one of the blog's readers.

Mike Davis, the former chief counsel for nominations to Iowa GOP Senator Chuck Grassley, shared the ad on Twitter along with the caption: "This won't fly in Iowa, even among conservatives.

"Iowans are welcoming to everyone. And trailblazers on civil rights. We never allowed slavery. And protected freed slaves. We desegregated schools nearly 90 years before Brown v. Board of Education. And were pioneers in granting voting rights to African Americans," Davis wrote

"We're a refugee resettlement state. And an early state in ending anti-gay discrimination. Most Iowans don't care if adults are LGBT. Just stay the hell away from kids."

The advertisement was also shared on Twitter by far-right political commentator Mike Cernovich—who falsely attributed it to DeSantis' team—adding: "I don't get it, truly I don't see the winning play here."

In response, Jennifer Van Laar, managing editor of the conservative website Red State, tweeted: "I don't either. They're trying to associate Trump's actions with the groomer agenda and it's just gross and comes across as completely bigoted, IMO."

Elsewhere, NewsNation reporter Zaid Jilani suggested the ad was trying to be "too clever by half."

"Trump has always been ideologically flexible and his supporters don't mind (and most GOP are fine with gay marriage now)," Jilani tweeted. "So far the GOP field has all tried to outflank Trump from the right and they misunderstand his appeal. Trump has never built political power off being the most extreme right wing on every issue, he's transactional."

In response, Twitter user @WeberMan92 suggested that the ad will appeal to its intended audience in the state.

"Whoever put these ads out—is specifically targeting the conservative Iowa voter for the primary. That's it," the account tweeted. "It's all about the primary right now.....and underestimating the Evangelical desire to move away from Trump would be a death sentence."

The ad makes reference to how Trump supported the inclusion of trans woman Jenna Talackova to participate in a Miss Universe pageant, which Trump used to own, in Canada in 2012.

Despite the ad suggesting Trump was overwhelmingly pro-LGBTQ+ rights, Trump signed a bill that banned transgender people from serving in the U.S. military in 2017.

During a June campaign speech in North Carolina for his latest bid for the White House, Trump vowed to remove federal funding from schools that teach "transgender insanity" and other "inappropriate racial, political, and sexual content" to children if elected president.

Trump also stated in February that would punish doctors who provide gender-affirming healthcare for minors.

Trump's office has been contacted for comment.