A Kentucky Democratic congressional candidate on Sunday congratulated Chinese dictator Xi Jinping for cementing his power over the Communist regime, tweeting that Xi and Russian dictator Vladimir Putin are "two of the best leaders in the world today."
Congratulations!
He and President Putin are 2 of the best leaders in the world today.
Washington has some of the very worst politicians in the world today.https://t.co/K2t1BLiYn1…https://t.co/8rGw1PdqBthttps://t.co/AAp3mstApg…https://t.co/XqWsx92wsJ… https://t.co/O8KkgQMzOW— Geoffrey M. Young (@GeoffYoung4KY) October 23, 2022
Geoffrey M. Young, who has been affiliated with the Democratic Socialists of America, cheered on news that Xi's underlings ceremonially appointed him to a third term. The Kentucky Democrat, a conspiracy theorist who retweeted an account that says "the Zionist entity will be wiped off the face of the Earth," is widely expected to lose to Republican incumbent Andy Barr, with every race tracker on Ballotpedia calling the district "Solid Republican."
Young's beliefs may complicate Democrats' attempts to paint Republicans as pro-Russian. After Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R., Calif.), who will likely be the next speaker of the House, said in an interview that the Biden administration shouldn't focus only on Ukraine, a Daily Beast columnist smeared House Republicans as "cavalry" for Putin. McCarthy in the same interview reaffirmed support for Ukraine, only saying that funding "can't be a blank check." Rep. Michael McCaul (R., Texas), who will likely be the next House Foreign Affairs Committee chairman, said the United States will keep giving the Ukrainians "what they need."
Young in follow-up tweets wrote that the United States has a "FASCIST, NAZI-SUPPORTING regime" and parroted the Russian propaganda trope that the West caused Putin to launch a bloodthirsty invasion of a smaller country. Young's campaign website calls for instituting universal health care, legalizing all drugs, and impeaching Supreme Court justices for overturning Roe v. Wade.
Twitter commenters blasted Young's comments.
"Gonna be fun watching you lose early and quickly," wrote @NickAPappas.