Republican Accountability

{{short description|Political initiative in the US}} {{Use mdy dates|date=August 2020}} {{Infobox organization | name = Republican Accountability | full_name = | native_name = | native_name_lang = | logo = Republican Accountability Project logo.svg{{!}}class=skin-invert | logo_size = | logo_alt = | logo_caption = Logo | image = | image_size = | image_alt = | caption = | map = | map_size = | map_alt = | map_caption = | map2 = | map2_size = | map2_alt = | map2_caption = | abbreviation = | nickname = | pronunciation = | pronounce_ref = | pronounce_comment = | named_after = | predecessor = | merged_into = | successor = | formation = May 2020 | founder = Defending Democracy Together | founding_location = | extinction =  | merger = | type = | tax_id =  | registration_id =  | status = | purpose = | professional_title = | headquarters = | location = | coordinates =  | origins = | region_served = | products = | services = | methods = | fields = | membership = | num_members_year = | language = | owner =  | secretary_general =  | leader_title = | leader_name = | leader_title2 = | leader_name2 = | leader_title3 = | leader_name3 = | leader_title4 = | leader_name4 = | board_of_directors = | key_people = | main_organ = | parent_organization = | subsidiaries = | secessions = | affiliations = Never Trump movement | budget = | budget_year = | revenue = | revenue_year = | disbursements = | expenses = | expenses_year = | endowment = | endowment_year = | num_staff = | num_staff_year = | num_volunteers = | num_volunteers_year = | num_students = | num_students_year = | website = {{URL|https://accountability.gop/}} | remarks = | former_name = Republican Voters Against Trump<br>Republican Accountability Project | footnotes = | bodystyle = }} '''Republican Accountability''' ('''RA'''), formerly '''Republican Accountability Project''' ('''RAP''') and, for the 2024 presidential election, '''Republican Voters Against Trump''' ('''RVAT'''), is a political initiative launched in May 2020 by Defending Democracy Together for the 2020 U.S. presidential election cycle.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|title=New GOP group launches $10 million campaign to get Republicans to vote for Biden over Trump|url=https://www.cnn.com/2020/05/28/politics/republican-voters-against-trump-ad-campaign/index.html|last=Warren|first=Michael|date=May 28, 2020|website=CNN|access-date=May 28, 2020}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite news|last=Karni|first=Annie|date=May 28, 2020|title=Get Republicans to Vote Against Trump? This Group Will Spend $10 Million to Try|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/28/us/politics/republican-voters-against-trump.html|access-date=May 28, 2020|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> The project was formed to produce a US$10 million advertising campaign focused on 100 testimonials by Republicans, conservatives, moderates, right-leaning independent voters, and former Trump voters explaining why they would not vote for Donald Trump in 2020.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1" /><ref>{{Cite web|title=Anti-Trump Republican group launches $10 million project to get Biden elected|url=https://www.newsweek.com/anti-trump-republican-group-launches-10-million-project-get-biden-elected-1507168|last=Roos|first=Meghan|date=May 28, 2020|website=Newsweek|language=en|access-date=May 29, 2020}}</ref> By August 2020, they had collected 500 testimonials.<ref>{{Cite news|author1-link=Jason Zengerle|last=Zengerle|first=Jason|date=August 5, 2020|title=These Republicans Have a Confession: They're Not Voting for Trump Again|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/08/05/magazine/republicans-confess-against-trump.html|access-date=August 9, 2020|issn=0362-4331}}</ref>

On January 29, 2021, it transitioned to the Republican Accountability Project (RAP), which focuses on defending "Republican principles", and attacking Republicans whom they hold responsible for the January 6 United States Capitol attack.<ref>{{cite tweet |user=AccountableGOP |number=1355138904857448453 |title=Last year, we at RVAT helped defeat Trump by promoting anti-Trump GOP voices. Now, we're transitioning to @AccountableGOP |author=The Republican Accountability Project |date=January 29, 2021}}</ref> The organization purchased ad campaigns to criticize members of the Republican Party, particularly those allegedly involved in the attack.

== Strategy ==

=== During the 2020 presidential campaign === The advertising campaign targets white college-educated suburban voters in Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Michigan, Florida, North Carolina and Arizona.<ref name=":1" /> Paul Waldman, writing for ''The Washington Post'' compared the campaign to a similar 1964 Lyndon B. Johnson ad called "Confessions of a Republican" giving Republicans "permission" to vote against Barry Goldwater in the 1964 presidential election.<ref>{{Cite news|title=The Never Trumpers might finally be on to something|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/05/28/never-trumpers-might-finally-be-something/|last=Waldman|first=Paul|date=May 28, 2020|newspaper=The Washington Post|access-date=May 29, 2020}}</ref>

Ad space purchased on social media and Fox News was scheduled to start the first week of June 2020.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Mazza |first=Ed |date=May 29, 2020 |title=Rank-And-File Republicans Turn On Trump In New Effort To Block His Reelection |language=en-AU|work=HuffPost|url=https://www.huffpost.com/entry/republican-voters-against-trump_n_5ed09e83c5b6aeca900f0949|access-date=May 29, 2020}}</ref> An ad produced by RVAT featuring Trump's descriptions of the coronavirus pandemic was planned to air during the Republican National Convention in Arizona, Michigan, Wisconsin, North Carolina, Florida and Pennsylvania.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Mazza|first=Ed|date=August 14, 2020|title=Republican Group Uses Trump's Words On Coronavirus Against Him In Scathing Ad|url=https://www.huffpost.com/entry/republican-voters-against-trump-coronavirus-ad_n_5f361062c5b69fa9e2f9355a|access-date=August 18, 2020|website=HuffPost|language=en}}</ref>

=== After the 2020 presidential election === After the election, the lame duck president questioned the legitimacy of the results and encouraged his supporters to demonstrate in support of overturning the results.<ref name=":5" /> After the January 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol, RVAT transitioned to RAP, assessing legislators on their willingness to support the assertions that the election results were not legitimate and their support of the January 6th event and of overturning the election results.<ref name=":4">{{Cite web|date=2021-04-26|title=Republican Accountability Project Creates "Report Card" to Grade Republicans on Their Democratic Values|url=https://www.politicususa.com/2021/04/26/republican-accountability-project-creates-report-card-to-grade-republicans-on-their-democratic-values.html|access-date=2021-05-02|website=POLITICUSUSA|language=en-US}}</ref> In April 2021, the organization released a "GOP democracy report card" which gave 14 members of congress an A and over 100 members an F.<ref name=":4" /><ref name=":5">{{Cite web|last=Foran|first=Clare|date=26 April 2021|title=Anti-Trump conservative group to grade GOP lawmakers on whether they uphold (or undermine) democracy|url=https://www.cnn.com/2021/04/26/politics/gop-democracy-report-card/index.html|access-date=2021-05-02|website=CNN}}</ref> They credited 6% of Republicans as consistently supporting democracy, with many of those retiring or losing their seats.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Levitsky |first1=Steven |title=Tyranny of the minority: why American democracy reached the breaking point |last2=Ziblatt |first2=Daniel |date=2023 |publisher=Crown |isbn=978-0-593-44307-1 |edition=First |location=New York |pages=130–132}}</ref>

== Ads featuring former Trump officials == In August 2020, former senior official in the Trump administration Miles Taylor filmed a spot, calling Trump "dangerous" and saying "What we saw week in and week out, for me, after two and a half years in that administration, was terrifying. We would go in to try to talk to him about a pressing national security issue—cyberattack, terrorism threat—he wasn't interested in those things. To him, they weren't priorities."<ref>{{Cite web|last1=Diamond|first1=Jeremy|last2=Tapper|first2=Jake|last3=Warren|first3=Michael|date=August 17, 2020|title=Former senior Trump administration official endorses Joe Biden|url=https://www.cnn.com/2020/08/17/politics/miles-taylor-trump-joe-biden-endorse/index.html|access-date=August 18, 2020|website=CNN}}</ref> Later that month another former Homeland Security staffer from the Trump administration, Elizabeth Neumann, made an ad in which she endorsed Biden and called Trump "racist" and "a threat to America."<ref name=":12">{{Cite magazine|last=Dickinson|first=Tim|date=2020-08-26|title=Former Trump Homeland Security Official Blasts President As a Threat to America: 'We Are Less Safe Today'|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-news/trump-homeland-security-official-endorse-biden-blame-trump-covid-1050281/|access-date=2020-09-20|magazine=Rolling Stone|language=en-US}}</ref><ref name=":2">{{Cite web|last=Mazza|first=Ed|date=2020-08-27|title=Ex-Trump DHS Official Turns Against Him, Backs Biden In Damning New Ad|url=https://www.huffpost.com/entry/elizabeth-neumann-against-trump_n_5f4758cec5b697186e3114bc|access-date=2020-09-20|website=HuffPost|language=en}}</ref><ref name=":3">{{Cite web|last=Hall|first=Louise|date=2020-08-27|title=Second Trump DHS official to turn on president brands him 'racist' in new attack ad|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-election/dhs-donald-trump-attack-ad-elizabeth-neumann-miles-taylor-a9692571.html|access-date=2020-09-20|website=The Independent|language=en}}</ref> In September, Olivia Troye, former homeland security and counterterrorism advisor to Vice President Pence and aide to the White House Coronavirus Task Force filmed an ad endorsing Biden.<ref name=":13">{{Cite web|date=2020-08-31|title=Olivia Troye Joins The National Insurance Crime Bureau As Vice President Of Strategy, Policy, & Plans|url=https://apnews.com/PR%20Newswire/c3915df7cc154ad6f7c084d91fadcc8c|access-date=2020-09-19|website=AP News }}</ref><ref name=":02">{{Cite magazine|last=Glasser|first=Susan B.|title="It Was All About the Election": The Ex-White House Aide Olivia Troye on Trump's Narcissistic Mishandling of COVID-19|url=https://www.newyorker.com/news/letter-from-trumps-washington/it-was-all-about-the-election-the-ex-white-house-aide-olivia-troye-on-trumps-narcissistic-mishandling-of-covid-19|access-date=2020-09-19|magazine=The New Yorker|language=en-us}}</ref><ref name=":22">{{Cite web|last1=Tapper|first1=Jake|last2=Herb|first2=Jeremy|date=September 17, 2020|title=Pence's former lead coronavirus task force aide slams Trump and endorses Biden in new video|url=https://www.cnn.com/2020/09/17/politics/former-pence-aide-coronvirus-task-force-slams-trump/index.html|access-date=2020-09-19|website=CNN}}</ref>

== Ads featuring other high-profile individuals == In October 2020 former CIA director and retired General Michael Hayden made an ad for the group.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2020-10-07|title=Former CIA director endorses Biden and says Trump 'doesn't keep the country safe'|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/republicans-against-trump-michael-hayden-cia-director-joe-biden-2020-b866761.html|access-date=2020-10-17|website=The Independent|language=en}}</ref> In October former GOP congressman Jim Kolbe also made an advertisement.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Republican Voters Against Trump|url=https://rvat.org/|access-date=2020-10-28|website=Republican Voters Against Trump|language=en-US}}</ref>{{Better source needed|date=October 2020}}

== Leadership == Organizers included Republican political strategist Sarah Longwell, conservative writer Bill Kristol, GOP strategist Mike Murphy, and former Jeb Bush aide Tim Miller.<ref name=":1" /><ref>{{Cite web|title=About Us|url=https://rvat.org/about-us/|access-date=2020-10-13|website=Republican Voters Against Trump|language=en-US}}</ref> The PAC receives funding from several prominent megadonors including LinkedIn cofounder Reid Hoffman, investor John Pritzker and hedge fund manager Seth Klarman.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Here Are The Billionaires Backing This Anti-Trump Republican Campaign|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/saradorn/2024/03/12/here-are-the-billionaires-backing-this-anti-trump-republican-campaign/?sh=ba521722c59ewebsite=Forbes|language=en-US}}</ref>

== Reception == ''The'' ''Philadelphia Inquirer'' said the group was "waging guerrilla warfare within the GOP".<ref>{{Cite web|last=Fitzgerald|first=Thomas|title=An anti-Trump Republican group is courting 'soft' Trump supporters in Pa. with $1 million in ads|url=https://www.inquirer.com/politics/pennsylvania/republican-voters-against-trump-pennsylvania-advertising-20200724.html|access-date=August 18, 2020|website=inquirer.com|date=July 24, 2020 |language=en-US}}</ref> ''The Washington Post'' columnist Jennifer Rubin called the pieces "some of the best pro-Biden ads".<ref>{{Cite news|last=Rubin|first=Jennifer|date=August 17, 2020|title=Familiar Republicans join team Biden|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/08/17/familiar-republicans-join-team-biden/|newspaper=The Washington Post}}</ref>

== References == {{Reflist}}

==External links== * {{YouTube|channel=UC03-Q9vq-JyiStTnqasADVg}}

Category:2020 United States presidential campaigns Category:2024 United States presidential campaigns Category:Never Trump movement Category:Political campaign advertisements Category:Political organizations based in the United States Category:Centrism in the United States Category:Crossover voting