Star In Attack Ad Turns Out to Be Partisan Operative With History of Targeting Lawmaker

A woman featured as the emotional centerpiece of a $1 million ad campaign attacking Republican Rep. Rob Bresnahan of Pennsylvania is not the apolitical Medicaid recipient she is portrayed to be — but rather a committed Democratic activist with direct ties to the party’s apparatus and Bresnahan’s former opponent, according to voter records, social media, and official documentation reviewed by the Daily Caller News Foundation.

The ad, launched by the left-leaning advocacy group Unrig Our Economy, shows Krysten Xanthis criticizing Bresnahan for “gutting” Medicaid after promising he wouldn’t. Nowhere in the ad is it disclosed that Xanthis is a registered Democrat, a Democratic committeewoman in Scranton, and a former supporter of Matt Cartwright, the Democrat Bresnahan unseated in 2024.

Xanthis’ partisan background, revealed through a Daily Caller News Foundation investigation, raises serious questions about the credibility of the campaign and the transparency of the advocacy efforts fueling it. It also provides a window into how dark-money-funded activist groups are attempting to sway battleground districts ahead of the 2026 midterm elections.

A Democrat in Disguise

According to public records, Krysten Xanthis was elected to a local leadership post within the Pennsylvania Democratic Party in 2022. She has also publicly praised prominent Democrats — including President Joe Biden and former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi — and sharply criticized Republicans on social media, posting graphics like “#NotMyPresident” over Donald Trump’s image.

The ad, however, presents her as an everyday constituent blindsided by Bresnahan’s vote in support of President Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” a wide-reaching legislative package that included Medicaid reforms and new work requirements. Her emotional testimony about a disabled client allegedly at risk of losing coverage is designed to convey urgency — but her long paper trail of Democratic advocacy reveals a deeper political motive.

Xanthis’ Facebook page also asserts she worked for the Democratic National Committee in 2025 — a claim the DNC has denied, saying they have no employment record for her.

Democrat-Funded, Dark Money-Backed

The group behind the ad, Unrig Our Economy, is not some small, grassroots collective. It is sponsored by the Sixteen Thirty Fund, a dark-money hub that has funneled hundreds of millions of dollars into Democratic-aligned causes and electoral campaigns. One of its key financial backers is the Berger Action Fund, a nonprofit funded by Swiss billionaire Hansjörg Wyss, who has donated more than $200 million to the Sixteen Thirty Fund in recent years.

From 2022 to 2023, the Sixteen Thirty Fund contributed nearly $8 million to Unrig Our Economy, ostensibly for “capacity building,” according to tax filings reviewed by DCNF.

GOP Response: “Fearmongering for Political Gain”

Republican strategists are calling foul. “Democrats are lying about Rep. Rob Bresnahan and his vote to protect Medicaid, and they’re lying about their messenger,” said Maureen O’Toole, spokeswoman for the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC). “This is fearmongering for political gain, and it’s a new low — even for Democrats.”

The ad campaign plays into a broader Democratic strategy to weaponize GOP-backed Medicaid reforms in key swing districts, especially where enrollment in the program is high. In Bresnahan’s district, more than 25% of residents rely on Medicaid, according to health policy nonprofit KFF.

Democrats argue that any cuts or new requirements threaten vulnerable populations, but Republicans — including Bresnahan — reject that narrative. “Anyone who Medicaid was designed to serve will continue to receive those benefits,” he said in an interview with The Times Leader. “If you can work, you should. And the requirement is 20 hours a week, and it can be fulfilled through school, volunteering, caregiving, apprenticeship programs, and traditional work.”

Common-Sense Reform or Cruel Cut?

Conservatives also emphasize that the Medicaid work requirement provision does not go into effect until 2027, giving states and beneficiaries ample time to adapt. They argue that the new rules are about reducing fraud, encouraging self-sufficiency, and preserving benefits for the truly needy.

“These are just common-sense changes that tighten up the existing structure of the Medicaid program,” said Nina Owcharenko Schaefer, director of the Center for Health and Welfare Policy at the Heritage Foundation. “What we’re seeing from the left are blanket fear-based arguments that don’t reflect the actual policy.”

The Bigger Picture

Though Unrig Our Economy and its allies argue that stories like Xanthis’ highlight real human costs, the revelation of her deep partisan involvement undermines the ad’s credibility and shines a light on a broader tactic: using politicized figures to present as nonpartisan victims in influence campaigns.

With Democrats gearing up to make Medicaid a centerpiece issue in 2026, voters may want to look more closely at the messengers — not just the messages.

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