Mary Miller, a newly elected Republican representative from Illinois, told a crowd of protesters that “Hitler was right on one thing.”
Miller was speaking Tuesday in Washington, D.C., to a crowd of Donald Trump supporters, according to Margot McGowan Staebler, a law student at Michigan State University who posted the video on Twitter. Supporters of the president, including a range of extremist figures and groups, have gathered in the capital for a mass rally to protest the election results as Congress meets to ratify them.
Not a great look for a freshmen Congresswoman to be caught on tape at a rally in the Nation’s Capitol saying “Hitler was right.” @Miller_Congress And for those who want to nitpick what she said, let me just stop you right there—Hitler was right on literally nothing. pic.twitter.com/KXbVT8jTr3
— Margot McGowan Staebler (@always_margot) January 5, 2021
Speaking in view of the Capitol building, Miller was discussing her emphasis on family values and the importance of convincing voters to elect Republicans when she invoked Adolf Hitler.
“Hitler was right on one thing: He said, whoever has the youth has the future,” Miller said. “Fill your children’s minds with what is true and right and noble, and then they can overcome evil with good because they can actually discern between what is evil and what is good.”
Jonathan Greenblatt, CEO of the Anti-Defamation League, condemned Miller’s remarks on Twitter.
“Hitler wasn’t right on anything – and invoking his name in this or any other context is wildly offensive & disrespects the millions who perished due to the Nazis’ hateful, genocidal regime,” he wrote. “An apology is the least you can do for your constituents & our country.”In response to the incident, the US Holocaust Memorial Museum stated that it "unequivocally condemns any leader trying to advance a position by claiming Adolf Hitler was 'right.'"“Adolf Hitler, the Nazis, and their collaborators murdered almost every member of my family, destroyed my entire community, and ended a centuries-old culture,” said Irene Weiss, Auschwitz survivor. “I implore our leaders and all Americans not to misuse this history - my history. It minimizes the evil that was Nazism, dishonors the memory of the victims, and pains the survivors. We should be learning from history, not exploiting it."World Jewish Congress President Ronald S. Lauder also condemned the statements by Miller, saying "It is simply outrageous and obscene for anyone to hold out Hitler, who perpetrated the greatest genocide in history, as a role model for any reason. One might expect this from white supremacists or neo-Nazis, but hearing the words 'Hitler was right' from the mouth of a member of the United States Congress is beyond acceptable behavior by any standards."
Miller, who was elected in November to her first term representing her southern Illinois district, is a farmer who teaches Sunday school, according to her campaign website. The Jewish Telegraphic Agency has reached out to Miller for comment.
Another freshman Republican congressman, Madison Cawthorn from North Carolina, faced criticism last year over a trip he took to Hitler’s vacation home and a post in which he referred to Hitler as “the Fuhrer.”