Cruz blasts Holocaust-denying GOP nominee: Vote for a Dem instead

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) on Friday slammed a Holocaust-denying Republican running for Congress  as a “bigoted fool” and implored citizens to not vote for him in the upcoming midterm elections. 

“This is horrific,” Cruz said in reference to a report about Jones claiming he “snookered” the GOP.

“An avowed Nazi running for Congress. To the good people of Illinois, you have two reasonable choices: write in another candidate, or vote for the Democrat.”

This is horrific. An avowed Nazi running for Congress. To the good people of Illinois, you have two reasonable choices: write in another candidate, or vote for the Democrat. This bigoted fool should receive ZERO votes. https://t.co/9WYlvCMKaF

— Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) June 29, 2018

Cruz added that Jones, who ran unopposed in his Chicago-area congressional district primary in May, should receive zero votes.

{mosads}Jones, an avowed Nazi, has attracted scrutiny for his beliefs on the Holocaust, which include calling it an “international extortion racket” and a “lie,” according to The Washington Post.

Cruz’s plea to vote for someone other than Jones comes after Illinois Republicans failed to qualify a third-party candidate for the general election before the deadline passed this week. The GOP also had failed to get Jones off the primary ballot and was unable to field a write-in candidate against him in the primary. 

Jones celebrated their inability to do so, saying on Thursday that he “snookered them” and adding that he “played by the rules.”

Jones is facing Democratic Rep. Daniel Lipinski (D-Ill.) in this year’s midterm elections, and his candidacy has Illinois Republicans worried it could effect other races. 

The Illinois Republican Party announced in February that it would not support him, saying it has “no place for Nazis like Arthur Jones.” A party spokesman also has said the party will recruit and support a write-in candidate for the general election, according to Politico.