The ad centered on Willie Horton, a Black man serving a Massachusetts prison sentence when he was temporarily released through a furlough program. Horton later faced rape and assault convictions, according toThe Associated Press.
The ad, created for Republican presidential nominee George H.W. Bush, used Horton’s case to attack Democratic nominee Michael Dukakis, then the governor of Massachusetts.
The Washington Post reported that Trump brought up the ad while making violent crime a central theme of his rally for Republican Senate candidate Michael Whatley.
“Willie Horton was a bad guy, really bad guy,” Trump said before comparing Horton’s case to Decarlos Brown Jr., a Black man charged in the 2025 killing of Iryna Zarutska, a 23-year-old Ukrainian refugee who was fatally stabbed on a Charlotte commuter train.
“Same thing as this, same as, same thing,” Trump said.
Trump also blamed former Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper for Brown’s release. That claim is inaccurate. The AP reported that Cooper was no longer governor when Brown was released or when he was charged in Zarutska’s killing. State corrections officials also said Brown was not released early through Cooper’s COVID-era prisoner-release settlement.
Trump previously referenced Horton in August, calling Zarutska’s killing a “Willie Horton — modern day” tragedy, according to the AP.
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