Politicians who campaign can usually count on the unconditional support of their loved ones.
On the other hand, two of Republican candidate Steve West’s three children have instead chosen to warn voters in Missouri’s 15th district, where their father is trying to get elected to the House of Representatives. Their message? “Do not vote for our father.”
“It’s impossible for me to imagine my father working at any level of government,” said Steve West’s daughter speaking to the Kansas City Star. “I have heard him make many racist, homophobic and anti-Semitic comments.”
West’s son, Andy, agrees, calling his father a fanatic: “He must be arrested. His ideology is pure hatred.”
In an interview with NBC on Wednesday night, candidate Steve West tried to set the record straight by denying that he was anti-Semitic, racist or homophobic.
According to him, he owes his complex relationship with his children to his ex-wife, who he says has “poisoned” the children during a difficult divorce process.
Several controversial outings
Although he says he is not intolerant, West has already made several controversial releases. After winning the GOP primaries last August, the Star compiled a list of offensive remarks made by the candidate on his radio show, on his YouTube channel and on his web page.
He alleged, among other things, that pedophilia and homosexuality “went hand in hand” and that “Hitler was right”.
When the NBC reporter reminded her of her claims, rather than belittling the facts, West went on to lament that a young straight woman had been forced to give up a sports scholarship after realizing that lesbians had the advantage of numbers in athletic programs.
Representative Jon Carpenter, the outgoing Democrat who will face West on November 6, says many of West’s fans are not aware of his many sorties.
“I am deeply disgusted by his candidacy. I hope that the electorate of the 15th will massively reject his hate speech on election day. ”
Even the Republican party has distanced itself from the candidate, saying that this type of dialogue had no place in the organization.
This is not the first time that relatives are moving away from a politician during this election campaign.
In September, six siblings of Arizona Republican MP Paul Gosar took part in an advertisement by his Democratic opponent.
Doug Taylor is a seasoned journalist with nearly 10 years experience. While studying journalism at the University of California, Doug found a passion for finding engaging stories. As a contributor to Oracle Savvy, Doug mostly covers state and national developments.
