Local GOP group compares Bernie Sanders to Hitler

Minnesota county chapter apologizes after widespread condemnation.

FEBRUARY 27, 2019 16:20

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) (photo credit: REUTERS/AARON P. BERNSTEIN) — Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT)

(photo credit: REUTERS/AARON P. BERNSTEIN)

A Republican Party group in Clay County, Minnesota, apologized late on Tuesday for sharing a Facebook post comparing Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) to Adolf Hitler.

The Facebook page, which has less than 400 followers, shared the now-deleted post over the weekend. According to screenshots, the page posted a side by side image of Hitler and the Jewish senator, listing policies they purportedly share, including proposing gun control, regulating the economy and supporting socialism. The Clay County GOP page added: "Those who do not learn from history are condemned to repeat its mistakes." Sanders, a senator from Vermont, announced last week that he would be running for president again in 2020.

The post gained wide attention after it was slammed on Twitter by the Minnesota-based Jewish Community Action group.

Earlier today we saw this post from the @mnGOP in Clay County, comparing Sen. Bernie Sanders to Hitler.There are a LOT of reasons this is a ridiculous, spurious comparison, and even more reasons why it's deeply offensive, and anti-Semitic. pic.twitter.com/jo93pq7FFc
— JCA MN (@JCA_MN) February 26, 2019

"This post was absurd. It was disgusting. And it was unquestionably, unapologetically, antisemitic," JCA wrote on Twitter on Tuesday. "We deserve a public explanation for the post from [the state's Republican party], a public apology from the party, and assurances that the person responsible will not be posting in the future."

Late on Tuesday, the Clay County Republican Facebook page removed the post and apologized.

"The recent Facebook post that was shared by a volunteer with the Clay County Republicans has been removed," the group wrote on Facebook "Whether it's the Democrats comparing President Trump to Hitler, or Republicans comparing Bernie Sanders to Hitler, it is wrong, inappropriate, and in poor taste. Our sincerest apologies to all."

Jennifer Carnahan, the Minnesota Republican Party chair, also criticized the group.

"The recent Facebook comment posted by a volunteer with the Clay County Republican Party is not appropriate and the MNGOP does not condone these actions or their sentiments," Carnahan said on Tuesday, according to Minnesota Public Radio. "We have called on the local Republican unit to remove this post and hold themselves to a higher standard in the future. We must, Republicans and Democrats alike, do better to dispel hate and come together as Americans."