Calls grow for Collins to address son-in-law's white nationalist posts
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U.S. Rep. Mike Collins (R-Ga.) gives a speech during a runoff election-night party after winning the Republican primary runoff for the U.S. Senate. Photo: Courtesy of Jessica McGowan/Getty Images
U.S. Rep. Mike Collins (R-Ga.) is under mounting scrutiny over his son-in-law's social media posts promoting white nationalist and antisemitic views.
Why it matters: A group of Black pastors held a press conference Monday urging Collins, a President Trump-backed candidate running to unseat incumbent Democratic U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff, to answer questions about the posts.
- Collins released a statement Monday distancing himself from his son-in-law's views, after telling reporters at an event last week that his campaign had "fully addressed" the controversy.
The latest: Monday's press conference was held weeks after CNN first reported that Collins' son-in-law, David Alan Scheer II, was a "pro-White nationalist and social media influencer with a track record of sharing antisemitic material and Nazi imagery in comments across the internet."
What they're saying: Rev. Gerald L. Durley, a retired pastor and former dean at Clark Atlanta University, said that as Georgia grows more diverse, its elected officials have to serve people of all backgrounds.
- "Georgia cannot send a man to Washington to represent all of the people of Georgia who will not disclaim the allegations that he is a white nationalist sympathizer," Durley said.
- "The most noble thing a citizen can do is to make sure they're clear what their beliefs are," said Rev. Timothy McDonald of First Iconium Baptist Church, an Ossoff supporter. "Mike Collins has not done that for the voters in Georgia."
Catch up quick: According to CNN, Scheer recently shared posts from white nationalist group Patriot Front and has also uploaded antisemitic conspiracy theories to his social media accounts.
- CNN reports Scheer has more than 1.5 million followers across Instagram, TikTok, YouTube and Telegram.
The other side: Collins said in a statement issued by a campaign spokesperson that he's "repeatedly said nobody speaks for me, I only speak for myself."
- "He has had no role in my campaign whatsoever, and I don't believe or support those views and I have always condemned racism and antisemitism regardless of the source," Collins said.
Flashback: During a campaign stop Thursday in Monroe County, Collins abruptly ended a press conference when his plan to discuss his proposed healthcare initiatives shifted to questions about Scheer, according to the AJC.
The intrigue: The night before the campaign event, the AJC reports, Collins met with dozens of members of the Jewish faith at the home of Kirk Halpern, owner of Farmers & Fishermen Purveyors.
- Halpern, who lives in Sandy Springs, told the AJC he "saw a good man in my home."
- "You can't pick your family," Halpern said.
Zoom out: Collins trailed Ossoff by 9 points in an AARP poll conducted last month.
- 5% of those polled were undecided or would choose another candidate.