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Behind the Aegis

(54,853 posts) Thu Sep 23, 2021, 02:20 PM Sep 2021

(Jewish Group) Virginia Republican apologizes after mocking Jewish House speaker's nose

Virginia Republican apologizes, but not for antisemitism, after mocking Jewish House speaker’s nose

A Republican political candidate in Virginia is apologizing for mocking the nose of the state’s Jewish House speaker — but he says his comment was not meant to be antisemitic.

Eileen Filler-Corn, a Democrat, made history in 2020 when she became the first Jewish and first woman speaker of the oldest legislature in the United States, the Virginia House of Delegates.

Last week, the state’s House Democratic caucus tweeted praise of Filler-Corn for her work on education, attaching a picture of her addressing an online meeting. Hahns Copeland, a Republican who is running for a seat in the House, replied with a biting comment.

“I was surprised to see a pair of eyes and a mouth with that NOSE,” he wrote.

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Copeland said he had Jewish friends who loved him. “While the Tweet was ugly and regrettable it was never meant how the Democrats are portraying it,” he wrote. “Many of my friends in the Jewish community know me and love me. They know me as a Christian and full of love.”