Jimmy Stewart’s Family Slams RNC Speech Comparing Trump to ‘It’s a Wonderful Life’ Hero

Kelly Stewart Harcourt, daughter of the legendary Hollywood actor Jimmy Stewart, took aim at the Republican National Convention in a letter to the editor of The New York Times. In the piece, Harcourt criticized the speech made Monday, August 24 on the first night of the RNC by California businesswoman Natalie Harp, a cancer survivor who credits Trump with saving her life after he signed the “Right to Try” law in May 2018.

“When I failed the chemotherapies that were on the market, no one wanted me in their clinical trials,” Harp said in her speech. “They didn’t give me the right to try experimental treatments, Mr. President. You did, and without you, I’d have died waiting for them to be approved.”< Harp went on to compare Trump to George Bailey, the main character played by Jimmy Stewart in Frank Capra's Christmas fantasy classic "It's a Wonderful Life." The role, which marked Stewart's return to Hollywood after taking an acting hiatus to join the Army Air Corps in World War II, is widely considered to be one of Stewart's most iconic. Stewart was Oscar-nominated for his performance. Harcourt called out Harp for comparing Trump to one of her father's most famous characters. "In her speech at the G.O.P. convention Monday night, Natalie Harp, a cancer survivor, made reference to the film 'It’s a Wonderful Life,' comparing Donald Trump to George Bailey, the main character in the film, played by my father, Jimmy Stewart," Harcourt's letter to the editor reads. "Given that this beloved American classic is about decency, compassion, sacrifice, and a fight against corruption, our family considers Ms. Harp’s analogy to be the height of hypocrisy and dishonesty." According to The Washington Post, experts are also casting doubt on Harp’s story based on “the description of the treatment she received and her timeline for receiving it” which “make it unlikely Trump had any effect on her case.”

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