AUGUST 2022 IGNOMINIOUS ABSURDITY OF THE MONTH: THE IGGY

1. Carl Paladino, Former New York Gubernatorial Candidate.  Every foray into Paladino's campaign history reveals a racist, sexist, piece of work. He is currently running for a congressional seat in the Empire State and is endorsed by none other than the third-ranking Republican in the House of Representatives, Elise Stefanik. The Buffalo businessman has been making some headlines lately for a slew of hot takes he’s had over the past month.

About a week after the shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, where 19 children and two teachers were murdered, Paladino posted (and subsequently deleted) a Facebook conspiracy screed implying that the mass shootings like those in Buffalo and Uvalde were not real or orchestrated by deep state operatives.  Before admitting that he did make the post, Paladino initially denied having shared the pathetic conspiracy theory, saying: "I don't even know how ti post of Facebook." 

After more pressure was put on him to “cowboy up,” as the gun enthusiasts love to say, like a true coward, Paladino offered up this backward-crawling explanation: "I just didn't remember the fact that I published it; I couldn't remember. It was written by Jeff Briggs, a good friend from Rochester. I published it because he is a friend."

Blame his “good friend?” In fact, Paladino has a new offensive set of remarks and ideas, first uncovered by Media Matters. Bottom of Form

According to the report, Paladino appeared last year on a weekly Buffalo radio show, called The r-House Radio Show, hosted by real estate executive Peter Hunt. Hunt was asking Paladino about how conservatives could get “roused” up in a state that votes predominantly blue. “How do you get people thinking about the possibility of change here in New York state and what that might mean ... for everyone here?”

Paladino begins by telling Hunt he was just thinking about this very topic “the other day.” Well, not exactly. See, according to Paladino, he was hanging out with some other good friends, and “somebody had mentioned on the radio Adolf Hitler, and how he aroused the crowds.”

Okaaaaaaay. Weird soundtrack for a group hangout, but let’s see where this is going.

Paladino sort of laughs with this worn-out white supremacist trope of a talking point. “And he would get up there screaming these epithets and these people were just, they were hypnotized by him. That’s, I guess, I guess that’s the kind of leader we need today. We need somebody inspirational.”

Someone inspirational. Like Hitler.

Paladino then makes a vague and somewhat rambling attack on “RINO-ism,” and Hunt quickly changes the subject to “deficit spending” in New York State.

It isn’t shocking that people like Paladino, and Trump before him, look up to Hitler and his supposed charisma. Decades ago, Ivana Trump did an interview with Vanity Fair and let the antisemitic cat out of the bag when she revealed that a book of Hitler’s speeches was the only book on Trump’s nightstand.