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Rep. Paul Gosar (R-AZ) blamed his video appearance at a White nationalist conference a month ago on his staff.
Gosar appeared at the America First Political Action Committee, as did Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA). The event was hosted by Nick Fuentes, and was an extreme right alternative to CPAC. Fuentes is an ardent Holocaust denier and has made anti-Semitic statements for years.
POLITICO spoke with Gosar about a video statement he made addressing AFPAC. He blamed the appearance on a staffer:
“It wasn’t supposed to go to Nick’s group,” Gosar told POLITICO, noting that a staffer “misconstrued” directions from his chief of staff. The tape was intended to go to other groups as a general “welcome video,” he added.“We’re kind of short-handed,” he said. “And there was miscommunication.”
Gosar spoke to AFPAC in-person in 2021:
When asked about addressing the White nationalists again this year, Gosar reportedly shrugged it off.
The video “just basically said ‘welcome to the Miami area. Have a great conference. The
He also said AFPAC was not among groups “authorized” to receive his video.
House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) had said he would speak to Gosar and Greene about the appearances at AFPAC. Gosar said he sent a copy of the video to McCarthy.
“So there is nothing there,” he said he explained to McCarthy.
Gosar concluded he and Greene “didn’t know anything about” Fuentes or his group prior to addressing AFPAC.
“The young people that were being misled by somebody — we should be trying to mentor, trying to change them,” he told POLITICO. “I’ve given up … on dealing with Nick. Nick’s got a problem with his mouth.”