May 16, 2022
Incumbent Madison Cawthorn is gearing up for a heated primary battle for his NC-11 seat in the U.S. House of Representatives. Endorsed by far-right entities and Former President Donald Trump, Representative Cawthorn is far from orthodox when discussing his leadership style and corresponding actions. While he has vocally criticized Iran and voted to approve funding for Israel’s Iron Dome previously, he has exercised a radical attitude in social settings. During the January 6th Insurrection, Representative Cawthron participated in the “Stop The Steal” rally, which events culminated with an all-out assault on the Capitol Building. In addition, as highlighted by an article published by the New York Times, Cawthorn made comments “calling called President Volodymyr Zelensky “a thug” and his country “incredibly evil” as Russian tanks rolled in.”
The Jewish Political Guide is here to highlight how re-electing Cawthorn may affect our Jewish community.
- He Suggested Cutting off all U.S. Foreign Aid Until a Border Wall is Built
On May 12th, Representative Cawthorn posted on Social Media: “No more foreign aid to anyone until we finish the Wall.” As can be perceived from his comment, this would include crucial defense and other significant aid to Israel. When forced to address his comment, Representative Cawthorn said he wasn’t discussing Israel in that thought but rather Ukraine. However, the words speak for themselves.
- He Voted Against the COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act
Rep. Cawthorn voted NAY on the COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act, a bill that included provisions for the Department of Justice to facilitate expedited reviews of hate crimes and require the DOJ to issue guidance to law enforcement agencies to establish online hate crime reporting processes.
- He Visited Hitler’s Vacation Home
In 2017, Cawthorn Visited “Eagle’s Nest,” which served as a vacation spot for the tyrant, menace, and war criminal Adolf Hitler. In Cawthorn’s post, he refers to Hitler as the “the Fuhrer” and noted that a visit to this destination was on his “Bucket List.”
- He has posted images of Nazi Propaganda on his Social Media
On more than one occasion, Representative Cawthorn has posted images of Swastikas and Nazi Propaganda on his social media accounts. Stories circulating the removal of some of these posts have previously been circulated by the press, but not all have been removed.
Rep. Cawthorn faces a full slate of challengers in his fight to retain his seat.
His top challenger in the GOP primary is State Senator Chuck Edwards, who has been endorsed by U.S. Senator Thom Tillis. State Senator Edwards describes himself as a true “conservative” and has expressed his support for Israel and his condemnation of the BDS movement. Chuck Edwards also said: “We’ve got to continue to educate America’s youth on the history of antisemitism, Israel, and the Jewish people.” “I’m committed to standing up to antisemitism wherever I see it. I believe that it is every leader’s responsibility to stamp out racism in any form.”
On the Democratic side, the front runner is Jasmine Beach-Ferrara. Beach-Ferrara earned an undergraduate degree from Brown University, a master’s degree in fine arts, and a master’s degree in divinity from Harvard University. Her career experience includes working as a minister and the executive director of the Campaign for Southern Equality. She has been vocal about Cawthorn’s lack of support to Ukraine in the Russia-Ukraine conflict, condemns Cawthorn’s NAY vote on a non-binding resolution reaffirming “unequivocal support for the North Atlantic Treaty Organization as an alliance founded on democratic principles,” and says that the Congressman is “too compromised by extremism.”