U.S. conservative activist says Hitler comments misinterpreted, he was a maniac

Candace Owens was trying to answer a question about the difference between globalism and nationalism. She felt that nationalism received a bad reputation because of people like Hitler.

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
Updated: FEBRUARY 11, 2019 20:52
Candace Owens speaking with attendees at the 2018 Student Action Summit hosted by Turning Point USA, Florida. (photo credit: GAGE SKIDMORE/WIKIMEDIA COMMONS)
Candace Owens speaking with attendees at the 2018 Student Action Summit hosted by Turning Point USA, Florida.
(photo credit: GAGE SKIDMORE/WIKIMEDIA COMMONS)
U.S. conservative activist Candace Owens defended herself against the backlash she received on Friday when she said Adolf Hitler would have been ‘fine' if he had stayed in Germany.
"This is so ridiculous it could have only come from BuzzFeed," Owens responded, after the media frenzy, through a video released on Friday, calling BuzzFeed a "scum of the earth publication," where the original report was published.
Owens clarified her words claiming they were taken out of context. She was not saying Hitler was "fine," rather was explaining "that people wrongly conflate the word nationalism with Hitler. Hitler was a national socialist, but from my interpretation, from my understanding, I would make the argument that he wasn't a nationalist, he was a homicidal, psychotic, maniac, who was bent on world domination, outside the confines of Germany."
Largely known for her support of Trump, Owens was trying to answer a question about the difference between globalism and nationalism. She felt that nationalism received a bad reputation because of people like Hitler and was instead arguing that Hitler himself was not a nationalist.
Owens clarified that Hitler could not be a nationalist because he put German Jews "into camps and murdered [them]. He was a mass murderer. That was the argument I was making on stage. This man, by no means should be considered a nationalist."
The political activist then explained what she thought the differences between Trump and Hitler's brand of nationalism were.
"Trump has no interest in conquering the world, I don’t think Bolsonaro has any interest in conquering the world, and these people are employing a type of nationalism that is desperately needed in times like this. When you have people who are trying to globalize our economy," Owens said. "If the only thing Hitler wanted to do was stay in his country and make Germany great again and he wasn't a homicidal maniac, we would be in a different position today. But he was, and there is no excuse for everything that he did, we have learned the lesson of nationalism, and it is something that will never come to America, like Trump said," Owens said with a smile.
Owens original comments in question were, "The definition [of nationalism] gets poisoned by elitists that actually want globalism," Owens said. "Globalism is what I don't want. Whenever we say nationalism, at least in America, we think about Hitler."
"He was a national socialist," she continued. "But if Hitler just wanted to make Germany great and have things run well, okay fine. The problem is is that he had dreams outside of Germany... I don't really have a problem with nationalism."

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Owens is the communications director of the right-wing college organization Turning Point USA. Owens and Turning Point are no strangers to controversy. In 2018, Ownes called the #MeToo movement stupid, "The entire premise of #MeToo is that women are stupid, weak & inconsequential." Turning Point USA received a lot of backlash for attributing false quotes to Speaker of the United States House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi, according to Politifact.com, a fact checking nonprofit.

 



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