During the 2008 presidential cycle former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney’s struggling presidential campaign produced a brutal ad attacking former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, another contender in the Republican primary, over a 2003 murder by a serial rapist that happened during Huckabee’s time as governor.
The ad never aired but it was obtained by Buzzfeed, which published it on Thursday. The ad had previously been reported in the book The Real Romney.
The ad focuses on the mother of the murder victim of Wayne Dumond, the serial rapist.
“This is my daughter,” she says in the ad. “She was pregnant with her first child. She was murdered by a serial rapist released early from prison in Arkansas. It was Mike Huckabee’s intent that Wayne Dumond be released from prison. It’s a pattern of bad judgement —very bad judgement. I don’t know how you could trust that person with the highest power in our country.”
The ad then shows a black screen with white lettering that reads: “Mike Huckabee granted 1,033 pardons and commutations, including 12 murderers.”
Romney’s campaign actually did release another ad which attacked Huckabee on pardoning. It was a softer ad hitting Huckabee on crime.
Huckabee, like Romney, has also shown interest in running for president in 2016.
Watch the ad here.
