Arthur Jones Image by YouTube

By Josh Nathan-Kazis July 6, 2018

Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner on Thursday scrambled to distance himself from Arthur Jones, the former American Nazi Party leader who is a Republican nominee for Congress in Illinois.

Rauner tweeted Thursday that voters should “vote for anybody but Arthur Jones.” He had previously refused to endorse Jones’s Democratic opponent, Dan Lipinski.

Jones is pushing back, inexplicably branding Republican Senator Ted Cruz “Count Chocula” after the arch-conservative urged voters to back Lipinski. Jones added that Cruz had “no business sticking his long, pointed nose into politics in Illinois” in an interview with Talking Points Memo .

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The debacle is proving to be an enduring embarassment for Rauner, who is an underdog in his reelection battle against Jewish Democrat J.M. Pritzker.

Jones is a candidate in a heavily Democratic Chicago district. He had no opponents in the Republican primary earlier this year, which is looking like an epic fail for the state GOP.

Jones has a long history in racist organizations, and was a former leader of the American Nazi Party. According to the Times of Israel, he has hosted annual dinners to commemorate Hitler’s birthday.

Contact Josh Nathan-Kazis at nathankazis@forward.com or on Twitter, @joshnathankazis

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