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Conservatives rallied around Sydney Sweeney this year when her provocative American Eagle campaign and reported voter registration in Florida made her a flashpoint in the culture fight, and even former President Trump publicly praised the ad as “hot.” Many on the Right treated her as a welcome counterweight to Hollywood’s usual leftward tilt, hoping a high-profile actress might quietly validate conservative cultural tastes.
But the ad that lit that fuse also carried the seeds of controversy — the “good jeans” double entendre was immediately seized by critics who absurdly linked the joke to eugenics and racialist talking points, turning what should have been harmless marketing into a manufactured moral panic. Left-leaning outlets and activists rushed to weaponize every ambiguity, proving once again that the Left will turn anything into an ideology test.
Even as many conservatives defended Sweeney from the left’s outrage, not every voice on our side gave the campaign a free pass; some conservative commentators rightly warned that sexualized ad work isn’t the same as standing for family values, and urged caution in turning a glamour moment into a political endorsement. That intra-right debate matters because it shows our movement still holds competing standards — aesthetic rebellion isn’t always principled conservatism.
Sweeney’s own posture has been telling: in a recent profile and interviews she’s refused to become a political mascot, insisting she’ll speak up “when she has an issue” and otherwise stay out of the manufactured culture-war script. That fence-straddling posture — neither clearly with Hollywood nor fully with conservative activists — is precisely what has driven right-wing commentators from enthusiasm to disappointment.
That ambiguity is the heart of why figures like Matt Walsh are blunt about their disillusionment: when a celebrity benefits from Republican goodwill but won’t embrace the principles that matter to working Americans, applause feels premature. Hollywood will gladly sell glamour and brand deals while asking nothing in return for the values that built our country, and conservatives should stop confusing market-friendly optics with moral or political courage.
Don’t forget the commercial angle driving the spectacle — the controversy only boosted attention and sales for the brand involved, a reminder that the media circus often serves corporate profit, not principle. If the Left wants to cancel everything that threatens its narrative and corporations profit off both outrage and contrition, conservatives should at least refuse to be played for clicks.
Hardworking Americans don’t need celebrities to tell them what to believe; they need leaders and cultural allies who will stand for families, free speech, and common-sense order even when it’s inconvenient. Admire talent, recognize cultural wins when they happen, but don’t crown a Hollywood face as a movement victory — not until she proves, by action not appearance, that she stands with us.
