GOP State Senate Candidate in WV Repeats Antisemitic Conspiracy About George Soros

Robert Karnes (R), a former West Virginia State Senator running to reclaim his seat representing the 11th District, was criticized on June 18, 2020 for promoting an antisemitic conspiracy theory about George Soros. In a now-deleted Facebook comment attacking West Virginia’s only Jewish lawmaker in the West Virginia House of Delegates, Mike Pushkin (D), Karnes falsely claimed that Soros “made his fortune selling Jews to the Nazis.”

Soros, who was 14 years old when the Nazis occupied Hungary, his country of birth, has long been the subject of antisemitic conspiracy theories. Most of these conspiracies paint him as a “puppet-master” or behind-the-scenes villain orchestrating efforts to undermine the United States. The false allegation that he “sold Jews to Nazis” or collaborated with the Nazis has been repeated by fringe figures like Alex Jones, but also by Donald Trump, Jr. and elected officials like Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-TX).

UPDATE AS OF JULY 11, 2020:

While advocating for a statue of Confederate General Stonewall Jackson to remain on the grounds of the West Virginia Capitol, Karnes wrote “good men fought on both sides” — a statement reminiscent of Donald Trump’s infamous comments about “very fine people on both sides.”