AI Overview The core facts presented in the Willie Horton campaign were true, but the ads were criticized for omitting critical context and using racially charged imagery to mislead voters about the broader reality of the policy
The crime: William Horton (a convicted murderer) was indeed granted a weekend furlough from a Massachusetts prison while Michael Dukakis was governor.The offense: While on that furlough in 1987, Horton fled to Maryland, where he brutally assaulted a man and raped his fiance. These facts formed the factual basis of the political attack.

Just because the dems hated it did not change the facts.