Just when you think politicians have hit rock bottom someone orders an excavator.

I used to think there were certain things that were  beyond the pale.

You did not mock someone’s childhood trauma.

You did not drag an estranged parent into public view to humiliate her daughter and you certainly did not turn the whole sorry business into a campaign commercial.

Apparently, I missed the meeting where basic decency was voted off the island.

Vivek Ramaswamy’s campaign has produced an ad featuring Ohio gubernatorial candidate, Amy Acton’s estranged mother, calling her daughter a liar.

Acton is Vile Vivek’s opponent in Ohio’s governor’s race. Her biological mother lost custody after Acton’s stepfather was indicted for raping her as a child and has not seen her since 1978. That is the family history this campaign has chosen to turn into political ammunition.

Imagine surviving that childhood, building a life, becoming a physician and then finding your mother’s denunciation packaged as an advertisement by a man who wants your vote.

What, exactly, are we supposed to admire here? The 4 million digital and TV ad production values?

Ramaswamy acknowledged that the ad came from his campaign. He also said he wanted the election to focus on substantive issues. An interesting ambition for someone whose campaign made this commercial.

Even Ohio’s Republican governor, Mike DeWine, called it deeply troubling. Donald Trump’s response? “Vivek should keep it up.” He said the ad was “hitting pay dirt.”

Pay dirt. What a phrase for digging through someone else’s childhood pain.

I am tired of being told that being appalled makes us naïve. I understand that politics is rough. I understand that candidates should face scrutiny, but I would like someone to explain how exploiting a fractured family tells us anything about fixing schools, lowering bills, or running a state.

It does, however, tell us something about the people who approve the advertisement.

I swear I will never intellectually or emotionally ever be able to understand how even ONE woman can possibly vote for Vile Vivek or continue to support that appalling orange misogynist.