GOP State Sen Candidate Sends Out Mailer Depicting Jewish Opponent Grasping Wads of Cash

Amy RussoOct 30th, 2018, 3:28 pm
 

A Connecticut state Senate candidate is being accused of anti-Semitism for mailing out fliers of his Jewish opponent clutching fistfuls of cash.

Republican Ed Charamut targeted Democratic challenger Rep. Matt Lesser showing him wide-eyed with an ear-to-ear grin while holding the cash before his face.

Lesser told the Hartford Courant he was stunned when he heard about the ad, which can bee seen in tweets below.

“I started getting text messages about it when I was at a forum with teachers in Cromwell [on Monday], people said they got an anti-Semitic flyer,” he said. “I did not believe them, I thought there was a mistake. Someone showed it to me and I think it would be a gross understatement to say I was surprised.”

Defending his use of the mailer, Charamut told Mediaite Tuesday that Lesser was “using the Democrat playbook of identity politics to hide from his record.”

“The mailer makes the point that if elected, Matt Lesser will undoubtedly vote to hike people’s taxes again and again. He’s good at that. The mailer makes the point that Matt Lesser will undoubtedly vote for higher and higher government spending. He’s good at that, too.”

Charamut then dismissed claims that the mailers were anti-Semitic, contending that the purpose was to contrast himself with Lesser.

“Those wishing to portray a graphic illustration as something hateful are completely wrong,” he said. “I reject hate speech in all its forms.”

However, speaking to the Courant, Lesser pointed out, “It’s imagery used to depict Jewish people going back hundreds of years. Whether that was intentional or not I can’t say. That’s not what our community is about.”

[Featured image via Twitter]

Tags: