President Biden’s reelection campaign unveiled a new ad Thursday that labeled former President Trump as a ‘lapdog’ for Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The one-minute ad, entitled “Lap Dog,” aims to paint Trump as cozy to Putin and highlighted that the former president indicated earlier this year that he told other NATO members he would not protect them from an attack if they had not contributed enough to meet the alliance’s defense spending targets.
“This is who Donald Trump is, a lapdog for a dictator who blames America first,” the ad says. “The United States must never be like Putin’s Russia; we don’t empower dictators, we don’t undermine freedom.”
It then includes a clip of Biden saying the U.S. “will not walk away” from Ukraine amid its war against Russia’s invasion.
The ad came out during the NATO summit that marks the 75th anniversary of the alliance. Biden is hosting the summit in Washington and is set to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. He reupped his vow to Ukraine Wednesday during remarks at the summit, which is serving as a test for the president amid campaign turmoil following his lackluster debate performance last month.
Biden will also hold a solo press conference Thursday, which marks a pivotal moment as he works to prove he’s fit for another four years in office.
The incumbent has personally attacked Trump over his comments about not protecting other members of NATO and his campaign released an ad at the time to run through the Super Bowl that targeted Trump over his threats to the alliance.