Fredreka Schouten

USA TODAY

A super PAC supporting Republican Marco Rubio's presidential campaign released a new commercial Monday that slams Donald Trump for his refusal to disavow ex-Ku Klux Klan leader David Duke during a weekend television interview.

The ad from the Conservative Solutions PAC opens with CNN's Jake Tapper describing how he asked Trump three times whether he would reject the support of Duke and the KKK. The ad then cuts to Trump, saying, "Well, I have to look at the group."

"Trump refuses to denounce the KKK," the narrator says. "Think about that? For president?"

PAC officials say the ad, called "Better Way," will air in March states and on digital platforms.

Facing a firestorm on criticism over his remarks, Trump said Monday that he didn't understand Tapper's questions because CNN gave him a "very bad earpiece" for the remote interview.

Trump blames bad television ear piece for KKK comments

As we've noted previously, there's a growing chorus of outside groups launching ads against the GOP front-runner.

One of the latest comes from a pro-Israel group, Emergency Committee for Israel. It, too, seeks to tap into events that transpired over the weekend with Trump to accuse the real-estate mogul of being too fond of dictators. (For those who missed those developments: Early Sunday morning, Trump retweeted a quote attributed to Italian fascist dictator Benito Mussolini from a parody Twitter account.)

The ad, called "Trump Loves Dictators," uses Trump's own words about Saddam Hussein, Vladimir Putin and others. The group, which is chaired by prominent conservative and Weekly Standard founder William Kristol, plans to spend six-figures on the ad campaign.

It's not clear what effect the new burst of anti-Trump advertising — coming on the eve of Super Tuesday contests in 11 states — will have on the GOP primary. Trump has spent far less than his rivals on early advertising and won three of the four first nominating contests.

But a growing number of Republicans are adding their voices of dissent as the race sprints toward March's crucial primaries.

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"Regardless of who wins or loses, we felt it was important to say something — to make sure people see that Trump is an apologist for anti-American dictators," Noah Pollak, the Emergency Committee for Israel's executive director, said in an email.