The Lincoln Project, an anti-President Donald Trump conservative group, released a new advertisement on Friday comparing the Republicans Party to China, North Korea, Iran and Russia for refusing to accept Trump’s election loss.
The 67-second clip opens with photos taken throughout American history, starting with the Founding Fathers and the signing of the Declaration of Independence.
“First they fought to birth a democracy, then generations fought and died to defend democracy,” a voiceover said. “In 2020, Americans voted. Joe Biden was elected president with the most votes ever cast for a president in U.S. history.”
Most media outlets and television networks called the race for President-elect Joe Biden on Saturday. The Democrat has secured at least 290 Electoral College votes, exceeding the 270 required to win the election, but Trump hasn’t conceded. Over the past week, the president has accused Democrats of stealing the election and filed a series of lawsuits in battleground states. Top Republicans have still not broken with Trump or publicly acknowledged Biden’s victory.
Visuals for the Lincoln Project’s advertisement cuts to photos of Democratic and Republican politicians during the 2020 election cycle, as well as citizens heading to voting booths on November 3.
“But still, most Republican leaders are refusing to accept the outcome of the democratic process. It’s shameful, cowardly and un-American,” the voiceover continues. “Across the globe, our enemies attack America by saying we really aren’t a democracy. Now Republican are acting like Russia, Iran, North Korea, China.”
The video then encourages viewers to call their Republican officials to demand they start accepting Biden’s White House win.
“Are these Republicans not Americans? If a president wasn’t elected legally, then no one was elected legally. Call your Republican officials and tell them to start acting like Americans and support democracy,” the voiceover concluded. “The question in 2020 was America or Trump. America won. It’s time for Republicans to put America first.”
The most powerful members of the GOP have stood behind Trump and his claims of voter fraud, but at least four senators—Mitt Romney of Utah, Susan Collins of Maine, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Ben Sasse of Nebraska—and a handful of other Republican officials have congratulated Biden.
The Lincoln Project’s messaging echoes views expressed by Biden’s deputy campaign manager Kate Bedingfield. On Thursday, Bedingfield said more members of the Republican Party will come forward soon to accept Biden’s victory as constituents begin applying pressure on them to do so.
“I think that he’s going to feel the pressure from his constituents, just as others all across this country are going to feel,” she said. “I mean, people overwhelmingly voted for the Biden-Harris ticket, but don’t forget, they also overwhelmingly voted for unity. They overwhelmingly voted for a leader who can find consensus, who can make progress, who can actually move the ball forward.”
