AFT Launches Multistate Six-Figure Ad Buy Targeting ‘Big, Ugly Bill’

WASHINGTON—The AFT is rolling out eight new streaming video ads targeting nine GOP senators over the big, ugly Trump tax bill currently before Congress.

The six-figure, 10-day ad buy will appear on all major online platforms and streaming TV across Alaska (Sens. Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan), Iowa (Sen. Joni Ernst), Maine (Sen. Susan Collins), Missouri (Sen. Josh Hawley), North Carolina (Sen. Thom Tillis), Ohio (Sen. Jon Husted), Pennsylvania (Sen. David McCormick) and West Virginia (Sen. James Justice).

The ads (links below) expose the true toll the so-called big, beautiful bill will have on people’s everyday lives, revealing the devastating consequences of shredding the programs hardworking Americans rely on to pay for tax cuts for billionaires.

The bill kicks millions of people off Medicaid. It balloons the national debt, ratcheting up pressure on interest rates. It includes an unprecedented school voucher handout that will siphon billions of public funds to private schools attended mostly by the rich. And it jeopardizes family safety by banning the regulation of artificial intelligence.

“These timely spots show the devastating real-world impact of the president’s big, ugly, bill,” said AFT President Randi Weingarten. “The stories are heartbreaking: whether it’s closing rural hospitals, denying kids critical healthcare or pushing up everyday costs for families, these reckless and chaotic cuts pushed by extremist politicians should be called out.”

“Their goal is the wholesale gutting of the services that help working Americans have a shot at a better life. And for what? To pay for tax cuts for billionaires. Our ads send a direct message about the human cost of the administration’s attacks and make the case that it’s time to put families, not ultra-wealthy donors, first.

“But the AFT isn’t just fighting back—we’re fighting forward for our vision of opportunity and justice for all: for working-class tax cuts, for full funding of our nation’s public schools and colleges, for the expansion of affordable healthcare and for appropriate AI guardrails that stoke innovation in close partnership with educators.”

This transfer of billions in wealth from workers to the ultra-rich comprises the largest fiscal heist in U.S. history. The Congressional Budget Office estimates it would reduce the resources of the poorest 10 percent of households by $1,600 per year, whereas those in the top 10 percent would see gains of about $12,000. Public polling has consistently shown that over two-thirds of Americans, including non-MAGA Republicans, oppose it.

The ads come in the wake of the union’s successful $2 million “Put Families First” campaign, launched last month in conjunction with the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, the National Education Association and the Service Employees International Union.

The new spots, comprising three explainer videos, three testimonials and two school voucher exposés, were produced in-house by the AFT.

Three explainer videos:

• Trump’s ‘Big, Beautiful Bill’ Is the Biggest Heist in the US History 
• Trump’s Budget: More for the Wealthy, Less for Everyone Else
• More Debt, Fewer Services: Trump’s Budget Fails Us

Three testimonials:

• Nurse’s Story: The True Cost of Medicaid Cuts
• Randi Weingarten: ‘Big, Ugly Bill’ Will Hurt Our Families
• Nurse’s Warning: Medicaid Cuts Will Endanger Lives

Federal school vouchers:

• Trump’s Budget Bill Funnels More Money to Billionaires and Wealthy Private Schools
• Trump’s Proposed Bill Attacks Public Schools and Students