The comments were condemned by Georgia’s only Jewish state representative, Democrat Esther Panitch, who called on the state Republican Party to condemn the exchange.
By Jackie Hajdenberg, JTA
A Republican state party official in Georgia appeared to agree with the host of a white nationalist TV show who said Jews run the government, responding, “They’re controlling everything.”
Kandiss Taylor, who chairs the Republican Party in her southeast Georgia congressional district, appeared on a mid-February episode of “The Stew Peters Show,” whose namesake host lives in Florida and has a history of promoting antisemitic rhetoric and Holocaust denial.
Peters and Taylor discussed the arrest of a man accused of vandalizing a rainbow crosswalk mural in south Florida honoring the LGBTQ+ community.
In the episode, which the liberal media watchdog Media Matters for America reported Monday, Peters said, “No more funding our own demise — bioweapons and forever wars from the Jewish lobby that basically runs our entire government. And they run this as well, don’t they?”
Taylor responded, “Yeah they run this. 100%. They’re controlling everything.”
I only expect an apology for the things you DID say. Like in this video, which is you. Bless your heart. #gapol https://t.co/SApenZJGhj pic.twitter.com/sDFtxEd0gp
— Rep. Esther Panitch (@epanitch) August 27, 2024
The comments were condemned by Georgia’s only Jewish state representative, Democrat Esther Panitch, who called on the state Republican Party to condemn the exchange.
“Ok, @GaRepublicans, it’s time to show the Jewish community of Georgia that you reject antisemites. Let me know if I can be of assistance,” she wrote on X.
“We always knew she was extreme,” Panitch told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency. “I just didn’t realize her extremism went after Jews. I mean, I’m not surprised, but I was not aware of these specific comments.”
Panitch also told JTA that nobody from the Georgia Republican Party had reached out to her about Taylor’s comments.
“You can’t pretend to be a friend to the Jews, or to support us, and allow your officials to make these statements without any remarks,” she added.
This is not the first time this month that Taylor has been in the public eye for comments about religious discrimination.
In an Aug. 17 episode of her podcast, “Jesus, Guns and Babies,” Taylor said that only Christians should be permitted to run for elected office.
“We shouldn’t be electing anyone in government — local, state or federal — that is not a Christian,” Taylor said. “That is how we take back this nation.”
In a now-deleted post from October 2023 screenshot by Media Matters, she responded to a post on X that said, “This has become very clear to anyone who can see: The Democrat Party has been overtaken by Marxist trash who hates Jews.”
In her reply, Taylor wrote, “Hey, We have some Marxist trash using our R who pander to the Jews. Not much difference.”
In a statement posted to X, Taylor declared her opposition to antisemitism and support for Israel and Jews. She did not directly address the exchange with Peters.
“I have been made aware of the Media Matters hit piece on me,” Taylor wrote.
“I want to state unequivocally that I support the State of Israel, that I support the Jewish people around the world, and that I categorically reject antisemitism in all forms. I have been proud to stand with the Georgia Republican Party on supporting Israel and rejecting antisemitism whenever and wherever it occurs.”
To Panitch, Taylor’s statement isn’t enough.
“This isn’t an apology,” Panitch said. “The fact that she’s in leadership at the Georgia GOP says that they do not take the antisemitism within their ranks seriously. They can use whatever platitudes they want, which I appreciate for them saying anything, but if they’re going to allow their members to say that Jews control the world, without any repercussions, then they’re just words.”
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