ADL Letter to National Republican Congressional Committee Regarding the Use of Nazi Imagery in the Health Care Debate Posted: October 16, 2009

October 14, 2009

The Honorable Pete Sessions, Chairman

Guy Harrison, Executive Director

National Republican Congressional Committee

320 First Street, SE

Washington, DC 20003

Dear Congressman Sessions and Mr. Harrison:

The Anti-Defamation League is the world's leading organization fighting anti-Semitism through programs and services that counteract hatred, prejudice and bigotry.   We are non-partisan and do not take a position on any aspect of the health care debate. 

Recently, news sources reported that someone at the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) "tweeted" about a YouTube video that used fake subtitles on a movie about Hitler to make a political point about health care.   Later media reports quote one of your spokespeople, John Randall, as saying:

We saw the video this morning and thought, like other parodies, that it was funny. In 20-20 hindsight, we realized it was in poor taste and pulled it down... I don't want anyone to think we're comparing Democrats to Nazis and to Hitler.

It should go without saying that, regardless of the political differences and the substantive differences in the debate over health care, the use of Nazi symbolism is outrageous, offensive and inappropriate.  Nazi imagery has no place in this discussion as it cheapens the memories of the victims of the Nazi regime and it coarsens the political debate.

Your spokesperson's apology, although welcome, is insufficient.  That some of your staff thought that this clearly outrageous and offensive video was funny and appropriate to be circulated under the NRCC's name in the first place is deeply troubling.   We think that you – as the most senior leaders of NRCC – ought to explicitly repudiate the decision to post this material and should make it clear that the NRCC is taking concrete steps to ensure that such reprehensible content is never given another home on an NRCC communications channel.  

We look forward to hearing from you.

Sincerely,

Abraham H. Foxman

National Director