ALGOP Chairman Bill Armistead said that recent statements by the Democratic candidate for U.S. Congressional District 3, Jesse T. Smith proves that the Alabama Democratic Party is becoming as radicalized as Democrats at the national level.
“Abraham Lincoln is reputed to have said: ‘Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak out and remove all doubt,'” Armistead said. “Apparently Democrat Jesse T. Smith, who is running against U.S. 3rd District Congressman Mike Rogers, is not familiar with that quote.”
The GOP Chairman noted that in a recent interview Mr. Smith, of Phenix City, showed his ignorance of Middle Eastern affairs by stating: “Fallujah is now in the Taliban’s hands. Fallujah was in Saddam Hussein’s hands and Saddam Hussein was not connected to the Taliban.”
“The last part of Mr. Smith’s assertion is correct, but the reason Saddam Hussein was not connected to the Taliban is because it is a Muslim insurgent organization in Afghanistan, not Iraq,” Armistead pointed out.
“Generally, when you’re standing in a hole digging your way to nowhere it’s better to stop digging and just step out of the hole, right?” Armistead posed. “Not candidate Smith. He doubled down on his initial misunderstanding of Middle Eastern affairs by implying that Saddam Hussein’s gassing of the Kurds in 1988 was a ‘necessary evil!'”
The full quote from news accounts was: “You know that tyrant [Hussein], that tyrant was needed in that area [where the Kurds were gassed],” Smith said. “Saddam Hussein was known. He would, he would [go] to throw some gas on his people. He did that to the Iranians. So, they knew he was a tyrant. Sometimes you have necessary evils and I think for that area he was a necessary evil.”
Smith courted controversy earlier in the month when he tweeted that Republicans were worse than the Islamic State, also known as ISIS or ISIL: “The greatest country on earth is being bullied from within. Actions of Republicans in congress are worse than #ISIL.” Smith subsequently apologized for the tweet and deleted it.
“All of this from a member of the Alabama Democratic Party. It has become appallingly clear that the Alabama Democratic Party has been radicalized by a ‘fringe element.’ But it didn’t start with Mr. Smith’s comments,” Armistead noted. “Recently Rev. Al Sharpton came to Alabama to proclaim that Alabama Republicans are trying to suppress the minority vote by requiring a photo ID before voting. Last year Alabama Democrats brought U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, the only self-avowed Socialist in Congress, to Alabama for a fundraiser.
“Alabama Democrats also brought Rev. Louis Farrakhan, a leader of the Nation of Islam who regularly issues vitriolic attacks against Israel, to Alabama to lend them a hand in jump-starting their Party. It is no wonder that Alabamians have left the Democratic Party in droves,” said Armistead. “And individuals remaining in the radicalized Democratic Party in Alabama, such as Senators Hank Sanders and Roger Bedford and Representatives Craig Ford and Alvin Holmes, show how out of touch the Democrats are with ordinary Alabamians.”