The Clay County Republican Party in Minnesota apologized Tuesday for circulating an image that compared Adolf Hitler to 2020 presidential hopeful Sen. Bernie Sanders, Vermont independent.
Shared by the group’s Facebook account over the weekend, the image showed side-by-side photos of Hitler and Mr. Sanders and said that both are self-described socialists who proposed gun control and promises of “political revolution.”
“Those who do not learn from history are condemned to repeat it,” the GOP account captioned the image.
The posting prompted backlash led by the Jewish Community Action of Minnesota prior to ultimately being removed Tuesday.
“There are a LOT of reasons this is a ridiculous, spurious comparison, and even more reasons why its deeply offensive, and anti-Semitic,” the JCA wrote on Twitter.
“This is especially gross because Bernie Sanders has talked publicly about his own family members’ murdered in the Holocaust,” the group tweeted.
Fred Wright, the chair of the Clay County Republican Party, issued a statement later Tuesday apologizing for the anti-Semitic image, albeit not without accusing Democrats of similar conduct.
“The recent post that was shared by a volunteer on the Facebook page for the Clay County Republican Party has been taken down,” said Mr. Wright, the Twin Cities Pioneer Press reported. “Whether it’s the Democrats comparing Donald Trump to Hitler or Republicans comparing Bernie Sanders to Hitler, it is wrong, stupid, and inappropriate. We sincerely apologize.”
Elected to the Senate in 2006, Mr. Sanders earlier this month announced his plans to seek the Democratic Party’s nomination to run against President Trump in 2020. He previously sought the party’s nod in 2016 prior to losing to Hillary Clinton.
• Andrew Blake can be reached at ablake@washingtontimes.com.
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