Bernie Moreno Fundraised With Nazi Impersonator, State Representative Who Suggested The Holocaust Should Be Taught From "Perspective Of A German Soldier"

September 17, 2024

Columbus, OH - New reporting from Jewish Insider found that Bernie Moreno fundraised with and accepted thousands of dollars in donations from a "member of a Nazi reenactment group" and an Ohio State Representative who suggested "that the Holocaust should be taught in part 'from the perspective of a German soldier.'"

Jewish Insider: Bernie Moreno campaigned with two individuals condemned for Nazi, Holocaust comments
Marc Rod
September 17, 2024

• Bernie Moreno, the Republican candidate for U.S. Senate in Ohio, has attended two fundraisers in recent months co-hosted by individuals who have been condemned for their comments about the Nazis and the Holocaust.

• State Rep. Sarah Fowler Arthur was a co-host of a July 28 fundraiser attended by Moreno - listed second on event invitations - and can be seen in a photo from the event.

• Fowler Arthur was photographed a day later standing next to the lectern at another Moreno event. She was photographed with Moreno at a third campaign event in August and posted a message praising him.

• Fowler Arthur faced backlash from the Jewish community and the Republican Ohio House speaker in 2022 for suggesting in an interview that the Holocaust should be taught in part "from the perspective of a German soldier" in addition to the perspective of victims.

• Based on a clip posted by News 5 Cleveland, which conducted the interview, Fowler Arthur initially brought up the Holocaust unprompted in an interview about a bill regarding teaching "divisive concepts" in public schools.

• "You should talk about these atrocities that have happened in history, but you also do have an obligation to point out the value that each individual brings to the table," she said.

• During the interview, Fowler Arthur also mischaracterized key facts about the Holocaust, including how many people were killed, as well as the Nazis' stated reasons for their actions, while also stating that teachers should not tell students that the Nazis were correct.

• Moreno attended another fundraiser in July co-hosted by Richard Iott, a former U.S. House candidate whose 2010 House campaign was torpedoed by revelations that Iott was a member of a Nazi reenactment group, photographed in Nazi regalia.

• The group specifically wore the uniforms of the 5th SS Panzer Division Wiking, a unit of foreign collaborators from countries invaded by the Nazis who joined the Nazi army and were responsible for shooting nearly 100 Jews during death marches through Austria.

• Iott has donated at least $5,800 to Moreno's campaign and can be seen in a photo from the event.

• When Iott's activities emerged in 2010, he doubled down, confirming in an interview that he was aware of the unit's background.

• "I don't know if you call them collaborators. They were volunteers. They wanted to fight what they saw as a bigger threat to them than Germany," Iott said. "They were doing what they thought was right for their country, and they were going out and fighting what they thought was a bigger, you know a bigger evil."

• Iott was condemned at the time by the Republican Jewish Coalition and then-House Republican whip Eric Cantor (R-VA).

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