Indiana state Treasurer Richard Mourdock (R), who unsuccessfully
campaigned for U.S. Senate in 2012, compared the economic situation in
the U.S. to Nazi Germany on Saturday.
“The people of Germany in a free election selected the Nazi party because they made great promises that appealed to them because they were desperate and destitute,” Mourdock said during a speech at the Indiana Republican Convention in Fort Wayne, as quoted by the Indianapolis Star. “And why is that? Because Germany was bankrupt.”
Mourdock called the comparison his “most important lesson” as he leaves public office at the end of the year, according to the Star. He also referenced the 70th anniversary of D-Day and the Battle of Normandy, which took place the day before his speech.
“The truth is, 70 years later, we are drifting on the tides toward another beachhead and it is the bankruptcy of the United States of America,” he said.
“Over the next several years, every time a program began to fall apart, Mr. Hitler’s party was very, very good at dividing Germany by pointing to this group or that group,” he added. “First they went after their political opponents. Then they went after the aristocrats. Then they went after the trade unionists. And ultimately of course they went after the Jews. They deprived them of their property, their rights, their citizenship, and for millions their humanity. Because they were bankrupt!”
Indiana Democratic Chairman John Zody called on Gov. Mike Pence (R) and other Republican leaders in the state to denounce Mourdock’s remarks.
Calling on Pence and our state’s leaders to denounce NOW Mourdock’s words comparing U.S. to Nazi Germany.@GovPenceIN @Brian_Bosma @indgop
— John Zody (@johnzody) June 7, 2014
The Indianapolis Star pointed out that some Republicans were critical of Mourdock’s remarks as well.
Mourdock lost the 2012 Senate race to Democrat Joe Donnelly. In the final debate of that race, Mourdock explained that he was opposed to abortion even in cases of rape because those pregnancies are “something that God intended to happen.”
So… Outreach then?
No, the most important lesson is that this man should never be elected to any public office ever again. Anywhere.
Dow Jones on 1/20/93: 3,242
Dow Jones on 1/20/01: 10,578
Dow Jones on 1/20/09: 7,949
Dow Jones on 6/6/14: 16,924
Clinton: + 7,336
Bush: - 2,629
Obama: + 8,975
Looks to me like the “Nazis” have done slightly better than the patriotic fiscal conservatives.
Mr. Mourdock, I’m a Hoosier who proudly voted for President Obama twice. Kindly fuck off and leave public life forever.
I wonder if Mr. Mourdock really wants to go there.
I’m not exactly an historian, but my recollection is that in Germany, one party cried “the sky is falling, the sky is falling,” blamed everyone else but themselves for their problems, advocated the imposition of their “purity of thought” on everyone else, exploited the weak, seized power through devious measures and fear mongering, undertook a foreign policy based upon aggressive imposition of their will on other nations (all in the name of “self-protection”), and then guided Germany to self-immolation.
Now if we want to draw an analogy with present politics, which party most sounds analogous to the Nazis?
Oh dear, he hasn’t learn when to keep his mouth shut.