What do you do when you accidentally hire a white nationalist? You fire them. That’s what you do.
And that’s exactly what Indiana Senate candidate Mike Braun did when he found out one of his campaign staffers formerly served as chairman of the National Youth Front, a particularly unsavory organization that tries to make children into little racists.
The Associated Press reports that Caleb Shumaker briefly collected ballot signatures for Braun, who is desperately trying to make the GOP Senate primary a three-way race between himself, Rep. Luke Messer, and Rep. Todd Rokita. He also, according to the AP, showed up at campaign events on the candidate’s behalf.
But while Braun condemned Shumaker’s beliefs as “disgusting” and added that “they have no place in American politics,” how did this staffer make his way onto the campaign in the first place?
A quick Google search should’ve been enough to dismiss him in the first place. His YouTube channel is full of creepy propaganda videos and “declarations of war” against diversity. In one clip, he blames liberalism for ruining America, “a nation ethnically fractured by a failed utopian social experiment of massive immigration and multiculturalism.” You know, standard racist stuff.
Braun isn’t the only one to accidentally bring on board the racist operative. On Monday, beleaguered Alabama Republican Roy Moore touted the endorsement he received from Shumaker’s super PAC, IndianaFirst. Moore hasn’t tried distancing himself. Others have.
After learning that Shumaker’s super PAC had endorsed him and was using his picture, another Indiana Republican, Rep. Jim Banks, immediately distanced himself.
“The Congressman has never met with this organization and didn’t seek its endorsement,” Banks’ chief of staff, Matt Lahr told the Washington Examiner. “We are trying to learn more about who they are. Congressman Banks believes that regardless of our political differences, Hoosiers must reject hatred and racism.”
Braun appears to have followed suit, kicking the racist off his campaign. A little screening ahead of time, a few Google searches at least, could’ve kept this from happening in the first place.
