The Democrat nominee for governor in Arizona once claimed that former President Donald Trump’s supporters were “neo-nazis.”
“[President Donald Trump] has made it abundantly clear he’s more interested in pandering to his neo-nazi base than being [president] for all Americans,” Secretary of State Katie Hobbs said on Twitter in 2017.
I mean, we already knew this, right?
— Katie Hobbs (@katiehobbs) August 15, 2017
“I mean, we already knew this, right? she asked rhetorically in a second tweet.
Both tweets are still up on the microbloggling platform.
Now, Hobbs finds herself squaring off against Trump-endorsed Kari Lake in the state’s November gubernatorial race.
“Katie Hobbs is similar to Hillary Clinton – she despises working-class Americans and admonishes them for having different political beliefs,” Lake’s chief strategist Billy Grant told The Arizona Sun Times Monday. “Kari Lake is focused on uniting Arizona behind her vision for the future. Katie Hobbs will continue to be divisive, while Kari Lake brings together Arizonans from all walks of life to support her campaign for governor.”
Hobbs herself recently had to apologize for her own racism scandal.
A black female Arizona Senate staffer called Talonya Adams worked for Hobbs when Hobbs was the State Senate minority leader.
Adams said white men were getting paid more than her, and complained about the disparity. She was then fired.
Hobbs testified against Adams at trial, but after after a long legal battle, the dispute was settled and Adams was awarded $2.75 million. That was the second-highest amount awarded to anyone who sued the state of Arizona in civil court this year.
Hobbs later apologized, and acknowledged that Adams had indeed been discriminated against while working in Hobbs’s office.
“Over the past several weeks, I’ve heard from many of you about my response to the discrimination Talonya Adams faced as an employee of the state legislature,” Hobbs said in a December 2021 apology video. “I understand that my response fell short of taking real accountability. Please allow me to clearly and unequivocally: I apologize to Ms. Adams. I am truly sorry for the real harm I caused to Ms. Adams and her family. My response to the jury verdict was short-sighted, unnecessarily defensive, and failed to meet the moment.”
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Pete D’Abrosca is a reporter at The Arizona Sun Times and The Star News Network. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Katie Hobbs” by Katie Hobbs. Background Photo “Donald Trump” by Trump White House Archived.
