“I reject antisemitism in any form,” Doug Mastriano has said, in response to the controversy over his use of the right-wing social media site Gab as a “consultant” to his campaign. Pennsylvania's GOP gubernatorial nominee later quietly closed his account. We’re glad he rejects antisemitism, but he needs to specifically reject Gab’s antisemitism. He has not done that, and that raises questions about how seriously he meant his rejection of antisemitic bigotry.
Antisemitism was part of Gab’s brand, and founder and CEO Andrew Torba’s profile, before Mastriano signed on with them. Torba clearly approves of his site being used to threaten Jews. Mastriano either failed to do basic homework, or knew exactly who he was associating with.
In October of last year, Gab’s official Twitter account (which has since been suspended) assailed America’s “Judeo-Bolshevik” society. And Torba regularly refers to “Zionists” on Gab, including claiming that “Zionists” created the Federal Reserve Bank. This all happened before Mastriano paid Gab $5,000 in “consulting fees” that resulted in every new Gab user following his account, and appeared on Torba’s podcast.
