Arizona Republican gubernatorial candidates have, once again, refused to take any action to stand up against the antisemitic and violent rhetoric spewed by members of their own party.
According to the Arizona Republic, Kari Lake, Karrin Taylor Robson, and Matt Salmon all refused to condemn Arizona Senator Wendy Rogers — even after she was censured by the state Senate and denounced by ADL — for making “violent and discriminatory comments to a white nationalist conference and on social media [for] attacking the president of Ukraine.”
Lake, who is endorsed by Wendy Rogers, said nothing after Rogers threatened to hang political rivals and used antisemitic tropes to describe Ukrainian President Volodymyir Zelenskyy. In the past, Lake has called Rogers “a fighter for ‘going against the woke political left.’”
Meanwhile, Robson – who “chaired the Republican Legislative Victory Fund that sought to put GOP candidates in seats across the Legislature, including Rogers” — refused to comment and Salmon put out a weak critique which failed to mention Rogers by name.
AZ Central: Most Republican candidates for Arizona governor avoid criticizing Wendy Rogers after censure
By Stacey Barchenger | March 2, 2022
Key Points:
- “Of four leading candidates for the GOP nomination to replace Gov. Doug Ducey, who has come under fire for his support of Rogers despite her appearance at a white nationalist conference, just one, Steve Gaynor, issued a direct condemnation of Rogers.”
- “Across the nation, the Russian invasion of Ukraine has pitted members of the GOP against each other, with extremist members’ backing of Putin drawing concern from establishment politicians who urge support of Ukraine. In Arizona, Rogers has been one of the voices spreading antisemitic and pro-Russian views.”
- “The GOP race’s frontrunner and another leading candidate declined to comment, however, potentially avoiding the blowback Ducey faced last week after suggesting Rogers’ extremist views were better than having a Democratic senator in office.”
- “The political action committee spent roughly $80,000 on Rogers’ race to help her defeat the Democratic challenger Felicia French, according to state campaign finance records.”
- “Lake, the former Fox 10 news anchor and GOP frontrunner, welcomed Rogers’ endorsement of her campaign in January, calling Rogers a fighter for ‘going against the woke political left and their media activists constantly trying to take her down.’”
- “The former television anchor’s repeated and false claims that Trump won Arizona in 2020 put her in line with Rogers, and both were rewarded with a Trump endorsement for their campaigns.”
- “Salmon’s campaign didn’t answer a question about the censure, instead sharing a Twitter post the GOP-nomination hopeful made after the Senate vote.”
- “Democratic candidates for governor directly condemned Rogers’ words and called on Republican leaders to do the same.”
Read the full report here.
Published: Mar 3, 2022