Donald Trump: "When I first saw it, I said, ‘Wow, that means Vivek easily will win the race,’"

At a Sioux City, Iowa, rally, Donald Trump defended a disputed advertisement from Ohio Republican gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy that features Amy Acton’s mother, Donna Arthur, disputing her daughter’s account of her upbringing. Trump said he had reacted favorably to the spot and advised Ramaswamy to continue with it, while saying it did not concern Acton’s allegation that her stepfather sexually abused her during childhood; he described it as centered on Arthur’s criticism. Acton, a Democrat, says she has not spoken with her mother since childhood and that Arthur supported the man Acton accused. Ohio GOP Gov. Mike DeWine and Iowa Republican Rep. Ashley Hinson have condemned the ad, and Ramaswamy says it is not about childhood abuse.