WASHINGTON, D.C.—Yesterday, White House press secretary Sean Spicer made comments denying Hitler’s use of chemical weapons when referencing Assad and the people of Syria.
Spicer tried to compare Assad to Hitler. “We didn’t use chemical weapons in World War II. You know, you had someone as despicable as Hitler who didn’t even sink to using chemical weapons,” Spicer said. “So you have to, if you’re Russia, ask yourself: ‘Is this a country that you, and a regime, that you want to align yourself with?’”
In response to Spicer’s remarks, Rea Carey, National LGBTQ Task Force executive director said, “We are outraged by White House press secretary Sean Spicer’s denial of Hitler’s use of chemical weapons, which in fact contributed to the death of over 6 million Jews and others through the use of gas chambers. His comments are in tandem with Holocaust deniers. To add insult to injury, these reprehensible comments were made as Jewish communities across the country and world gather to celebrate Passover. It was an astonishingly ignorant and harmful statement to make.
“We denounce all comparisons that invoke the painful legacies of trauma and brutality in an attempt to make a political point. We continue to be deeply offended, angry, and disgusted by the actions of Trump’s Administration. No apology can erase these indignities from our memories. On the contrary, they fuel our commitment to stand together with others for truth and justice.”
The Huffington Post reported that Spicer apologized Tuesday for his remarks on the Holocaust, telling CNN’s Wolf Blitzer that his comments during a White House press briefing were a “mistake.”
