Democratic congressional candidate Maureen Galindo is again stirring up controversy, this time for saying her runoff opponent, former Bexar County Sheriff’s Department spokesman Johnny Garcia, should be tried for treason.
“[Immigration and Customs Enforcement] is again part of [the Department of Homeland Security], which has headquarters and offices inside Israel,” Galindo said on Texas Public Radio’s The Source with David Martin Davies.
“This is an Israeli occupation of America,” the candidate for San Antonio’s 35th Congressional District continued. “In fact, I was thinking this morning, maybe Johnny Garcia and others who support him, or anybody who is supported by Israel, should be tried for treason.”
For reference, ICE is headquartered in Washington, D.C. And, while the agency has two offices in Israel, they are located within the U.S. diplomatic facilities, as is common in other U.S. diplomatic outposts.
A bewildered Davies tried to respond before Galindo cut him off, warning that Israel could be planning genocide in the United States. She didn’t elaborate on how that might come about.
Garcia, who was also on The Source on Wednesday, dismissed Galindo’s assertion that he should be tried for treason or that he is controlled by Israel.
“I think she’s drawing these baseless claims from the group called AIPAC Tracker that put us on that website after the endorsement of the Democratic majority for Israel,” Garcia said.
AIPAC (the American Israel Public Affairs Committee) is an advocacy group that lobbies the U.S. government to strengthen its ties with Israel.
“We haven’t taken any money from AIPAC,” Garcia added. “My issues are making sure that our community stays safe, that we combat antisemitic remarks like we’ve seen my opponent make.”
Indeed, New York Times columnist Michelle Goldberg called out Galindo over the weekend for remarks in a Facebook video where she claimed “Jews … own Hollywood” and are using their influence to take over the world and bring about the Rapture.
Instead of apologizing, Galindo has doubled down on her views this week, accusing Garcia, in remarks to the Current, of collaborating with “Billionaire Zionist Jews.” She also accused those same billionaires of operating a human trafficking network in Bexar County.
Galindo and some of her supporters maintain that her most recent remarks aren’t antisemitic because she’s targeting Zionists — or those who believe that Jews are entitled to a sovereign ethno-state — not Jewish people in general.
The Jewish Federation of San Antonio, in a statement this week, disagreed, stating that Galindo is peddling antisemitic tropes and conspiracies under the guise of anti-Zionism.
“Divisive and hateful rhetoric targeting the Jewish community has no place in our civic life,” the group said. “San Antonio is a vibrant and diverse community, and an attack on any group is an attack on us all. We call on all candidates and elected officials to engage in meaningful dialogue with the community and refrain from bigoted and offensive attacks.”
Early voting in the Texas Democratic runoff begins May 18, with Election Day on May 26. Voting information is available on the Bexar County Elections Department’s website.
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