Missouri Republican leaders are condemning the winner of a GOP primary for a northwest Missouri seat, saying they did not recruit or support the candidate who has said "Hitler was right" and promoted conspiracies about Jewish "cabals" that torture children.
Steve West, who also has a YouTube channel and a website where he has expressed homophobic, Islamophobic and racist views, won Tuesday's primary for a Clay County House seat by nearly 25 points over three other candidates, The Kansas City Star reported.
On Jan. 23, 2017, West, using his persona "Jack Justice," remarked on a show on AM radio station KCXL that "looking back in history, unfortunately, [Nazi leader Adolf] Hitler was right about what was taking place in Germany."
The Missouri Republican Party on Thursday issued a statement distancing itself from West.
"Steve West's shocking and vile comments do not reflect the position of the Missouri Republican Party or indeed of any decent individual," the statement said. "West's abhorrent rhetoric has absolutely no place in the Missouri Republican Party or anywhere. We wholeheartedly condemn his comments."
Karen Aroesty, a regional director of the Anti-Defamation League, a Jewish NGO that combats anti-Semitism worldwide, said she was trying to determine how West and his views "flew under the radar" before the election.
"What is a person who is elected into a position of power going to do with beliefs like this?" she asked.
Asked if anyone had performed a background check on candidates, the Clay County GOP said it does not vet candidates or involve itself in primary elections.
The Missouri House Republican Leadership said in a statement Thursday that it was not aware of anyone asking West to run.
"To our knowledge, no member of the Missouri Republican Party, the House Republican Campaign Committee or sitting member of the General Assembly recruited Mr. West to run for office. We find his statements to be vile, offensive and out of line with our party's values," the statement said.
West told The Kansas City Star Thursday that he wanted to talk about his platform and suggested his recorded statements may have been taken out of context. He said he believes all men are created equal, but that he finds fault with some ideologies, including Islam and Judaism.
When asked about Jewish people in Missouri, he said, "Well, maybe they shouldn't vote for me."
He said he hoped voters would listen to his remarks in full and make up their own minds.
State Rep. Jon Carpenter, the Democratic incumbent for the district, said he hoped people who voted for West simply were unaware of his views.
"I just want everyone who lives in this community to know that they're welcome here," Carpenter wrote in an email. "Muslims, Jews, Catholics, the LGBTQ community, people of all races and national origins, and everyone else Steve West has targeted with hate. His views do not reflect our values. We'll stand together and love will conquer hate, as it always does."
