Facing criticism for earlier comments that compared abortion to the Holocaust, the Republican gubernatorial candidate in Illinois refuses to apologize, saying a group of rabbis backed the comparison.
“I have been told by the Jewish community itself that I am right,” Darren Bailey, a Republican state senator who is trying to unseat Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, he said in a radio interview over the weekend. “Everyone in Chabads that we met with and the Jewish rabbis said, ‘No, you’re actually right.'”
In a 2017 Facebook video that resurfaced earlier this month, Bailey said that “World War II’s attempted extermination of Jews doesn’t even compare to the shadow of life that has been lost to abortion since its inception.” legalization”.
Pritzer, who is Jewish, condemned the comparison.
“Darren Bailey’s disgusting claim that a woman determining her own reproductive future is worse than the Nazi genocide of 6 million Jews is offensive to Illinoisans everywhere,” said Eliza Glezer, press secretary for the campaign. of Pritzer, in a statement. “With violent anti-Semitism on the rise and in the wake of a massacre against a predominantly Jewish Highland Park, Bailey must answer for his hateful comments.”
The Pritzker campaign also released a TV ad highlighting Bailey’s comments.
Bailey said the announcement came a day after he met with the rabbis.
“Pritzker knew it,” he said. “So the punctuality was not a mistake.”
It is not clear which group of rabbis he was referring to.
Rabbi Avraham Kagan, director of government affairs for the Lubavitch Chabad of Illinois, told the forward“We do not know who he met with and his comments do not reflect our position.”
A representative for Bailey did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Bailey said she is “pro-life” but admitted “nothing is going to change” the law in Illinois, where abortion is legal and protected.
“My goal is to make abortion unnecessary,” he said. “We work together with everyone and find real solutions, of which we don’t have right now.”
Bailey’s comparison of abortion to the Holocaust has drawn widespread condemnation.
“The Holocaust and abortion are not the same thing,” the Midwest chapter of the Anti-Defamation League said in a statement. “These kinds of comments have no place in public discourse. They are deeply offensive and do incredible harm to the millions of Jews and other innocent victims murdered by the Nazis.”
“Comparing the extreme horror of the Holocaust and its immeasurable loss to a woman’s right to choose is unacceptable,” Sen. Tammy Duckworth, D-Illinois, said in a statement. Final point.
It is not the first time that Bailey has generated controversy. Shortly after the mass shooting in Highland Park, Ill., on July 4, he was in nearby Skokie, Ill., one of several surrounding communities forced to cancel their Independence Day parades in the wake of the slaughter.
“The shooter is still at large, so let us pray that justice prevails,” bailey said while leading a group prayer that Live stream on your Facebook page. “And then let’s go ahead and celebrate the independence of this nation.”
He added: “We have to get the corruption and evil out of our government.”
Exterior wall later apologized for suggesting to the community that they quickly “go ahead” and “celebrate” Independence Day.
“I apologize if we in any way lessen the pain being felt throughout our state today,” he said in a statement. “I hope we can all come together in prayer and action to address rampant crime and mental health issues to make sure these horrible tragedies don’t happen again.”