Act of Love is a phrase used by American politician

Jeb Bush John Ellis "Jeb" Bush (born February 11, 1953) is an American politician and businessman who served as the 43rd governor of Florida from 1999 to 2007. Bush, who grew up in Houston, was the second son of former President George H. W. Bush a ...

to describe the act of immigrating illegally to the United States for the purpose of improving a family's economic condition, and also a U.S.

political advertisement In politics, campaign advertising is the use of an advertising campaign through the media to Social influence, influence a political debate, and ultimately, voters. These ads are designed by political consulting, political consultants and polit ...

released by the 2016 presidential campaign of

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of Pe ...

as part of an attack on Bush's approach to

illegal immigration to the United States Illegal immigration to the United States is the process of migrating into the United States in violation of federal immigration laws. This can include foreign nationals (aliens) who have entered the United States unlawfully, as well as thos ...

Background

Bush made the statement in answer to a question put by a reporter during a celebration of the 25th anniversary of the presidency of his father,

George H. W. Bush George Herbert Walker BushSince around 2000, he has been usually called George H. W. Bush, Bush Senior, Bush 41 or Bush the Elder to distinguish him from his eldest son, George W. Bush, who served as the 43rd president from 2001 to 2009; pr ...

, held at the

George Bush Presidential Library The George H.W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum is the presidential library and burial site of George H. W. Bush, the 41st president of the United States (1989–1993), and his wife Barbara Bush. Located on a site on the west campus of T ...

in April 2014. During the August 6, 2015 Republican Presidential debate, when moderator

Chris Wallace Christopher Wallace (born October 12, 1947) is an American broadcast journalist. He is known for his tough and wide-ranging interviews, for which he is often compared to his father, ''60 Minutes'' journalist Mike Wallace. Over his 50-year care ...

asked Bush if he stood by this statement, Bush responded, "I do. I believe that the great majority of people coming here illegally have no other option. They want to provide for their family." He added that "there should be a path to earned legal status" for illegal immigrants. The advertisement, released in August 2015, attacked Bush by playing a tape of Bush defending illegal entry into the U.S. by undocumented migrants as "an act of love." In the ad, mugshots of illegal immigrants who committed violent crimes in the U.S. alternate with footage of Bush saying, "Yeah, they broke the law, but it's not a felony.... It's an act of love." It is regarded by a number of commentators as having been a crucial turning point in the failure of the Bush candidacy.

Response to advertisement

The ad attracted comparisons to the 1988 "

Willie Horton William R. Horton (born August 12, 1951), commonly referred to as "Willie Horton", is an American convicted felon who became notorious for committing violent crimes while on furlough from prison, where he was serving a life sentence without the ...

" advertisement, "one of the most notorious political attacks in recent decades."

Role in 2016 campaign

The phrase is regarded as having played a role in the withdrawal of Bush's candidacy. Looking back on the event months later, ''

The Weekly Standard ''The Weekly Standard'' was an American neoconservative political magazine of news, analysis and commentary, published 48 times per year. Originally edited by founders Bill Kristol and Fred Barnes, the ''Standard'' had been described as a "red ...

'' called "Act of Love" a "

gonzo Gonzo may refer to: People * Gonzo (nickname), a list of people with the nickname * Radislav Jovanov Gonzo (born 1964), Croatian music video director Radislav Jovanov, also known as Gonzo * Matthias Röhr (born 1962), German musician whose sta ...

web video" and "Trump's first truly effective ad" and said that it "pointed out that the debate in which Bush defended illegal immigrants took place just a month after the killing of Kathryn Steinle in San Francisco by an illegal immigrant who had been deported multiple times." The ad features an image of Juan Francisco Lopez-Sanchez, the sole suspect in that killing. According to ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...

'', " candidate in the race was prepared for GOP voters' opposition to immigration, with the exception of Trump", and the anti-illegal-immigration sentiment tapped by Trump contributed to Bush's defeat. According to Eric Fehrnstrom, a Republican political analyst and media strategist, Bush's response to the question put to him about this statement during the August 2015 Republican presidential debate marked a crucial turning point in the campaign for the Republican nomination. Looking back on the campaign, conservative political analyst Michael Barone considers the Trump's two-pronged attack on Bush in the August Republican primary debate, for the "act of love" position on illegal immigration and for being weak, as a key moment in Trump's political rise.

Impact of ad on campaign media

The ''

San Francisco Chronicle The ''San Francisco Chronicle'' is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of Northern California. It was founded in 1865 as ''The Daily Dramatic Chronicle'' by teenage brothers Charles de Young and M. H. de Young, Michael H. de ...

'' described the ad, together with Bush's attacks on Trump, as pivotal in transforming

Instagram Instagram is a photo and video sharing social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. The app allows users to upload media that can be edited with filters and organized by hashtags and geographical tagging. Posts can ...

from a personal photo-sharing app that some celebrities and politicians used to enhance their images into a campaign tool.

References

{{Reflist 2015 in American television 2015 works 2016 United States presidential election in popular culture 2016 United States Republican presidential primaries American political catchphrases Political mass media in the United States American television commercials Donald Trump and social media Donald Trump 2016 presidential campaign Jeb Bush Political campaign advertisements Works about illegal immigration to the United States