With reelection on the line, Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders is drawing fire from many within her own party over a new campaign ad. Some of the far-right critics online are calling the ad “anti-white’ for its depiction of welfare abuse.
The ad, promoting the Republican Huckabee Sanders’ welfare-to-work initiative, depicts an able-bodied white man, “Brad,” who spends his days playing video games and lounging on the couch instead of working while relying on the benefits of taxpayer funds to get by.
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What is welfare-to-work?
Arkansas’ welfare-to-work program soft-launched in July with the goal of full implementation by Jan. 1, 2027. Under the program, able-bodied adults aged 18-64 must work 80 hours per month to receive Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and Medicaid benefits.
“You pay taxes to cover welfare for guys like Brad who just choose not to work,” Huckabee Sanders said in the new ad.
In a social media post accompanying the ad, she added, “If you’re young, healthy, and get government assistance, you should work, go to school, or volunteer.”
‘Political malpractice’
Critics from within the GOP are now blasting her online, saying the ad doesn’t reflect reality.
“Going after white people, making an anti-white ad, an anti-Gen Z ad, 30 days before a critical election is political malpractice,” right-wing political activist and author Jack Posobiec said in a post on social media. “Madam governor, you need to take this Tweet down, fire your comms team and have your office issue an apology.”
“This is how you end a national political career before it even begins,” Will Chamberlain, senior counsel of the Article III Project, said in a post to X.
Fear No Fact.
In Fiscal Year 2025, 62% of people sentenced for benefits fraud were men and 20% of them were white, 57% were Black, 20% Hispanic, and 3% were other races, according to the U.S. Sentencing Commission.
Chamberlain also called for a public retraction of the ad and changes within her communications team, “i.e. people getting fired for this.”
Chamberlain added, “This is totally unacceptable and the most obnoxious thing about this is the way you are pretending not to understand the point. The point is not that welfare work requirements are bad – they’re good. The point is that you are demonizing white men inappropriately when they are not the primary demographic that is engaged in welfare fraud.”
Right-wing filmmaker Mike Cernovich stated his opinion simply, saying, “This is how Republicans see white men. Quite the message a few weeks from the midterms.”
Huckabee Sanders’ response
Huckabee Sanders responded to her critics in a follow-up post on social media.
“Some critics online don’t like my welfare work requirement ad,” she said. “Next thing you know they’ll say I should have used cookies instead of cheese balls. If you are able-bodied you should not collect welfare simply because you choose not to work. Period.”
Arkansas’ general election is set for Nov. 3.
