David Bossie, president of the conservative political advocacy group Citizens United, slammed a Virginia Democratic congressional candidate on Friday for comparing President Donald Trump to former al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, calling Dan Helmer a "desperate" candidate in the Virginia race.
Helmer is running in the Democratic primary for Virginia's 10th Congressional District to see who will run to try and unseat incumbent Rep. Barbara Comstock (R., Va.). With the June 12 primary quickly approaching, Helmer released a controversial ad on Wednesday comparing Trump to bin Laden. The ad appears to be a last-minute attempt to appeal to the liberal base that strongly opposes Trump.
Bossie, noting he knows Comstock well and his oldest daughter is the congresswomen's goddaughter, came to her defense during an appearance on Fox News' "Outnumbered." He predicted Comstock would win and said each of her Democratic opponents is "crazier than the next one."
"She is a dedicated, principled member of Congress. She does an outstanding job for the 10th District of Virginia and is going to win this November, hands down. She is in a tough race, but she is going to win," Bossie said.
He then pivoted to address Helmer, a U.S. Army veteran, and his desperation to move up in the polls and gain national attention.
"He is in second or third place [in the Democratic primary]. This is a desperate move ... to make himself different from the rest of them. All of the candidates in this primary, everyone on the Democratic side, have Trump Derangement Syndrome," said Bossie, Trump's deputy campaign manager during the 2016 presidential campaign. "They are all crazier than the next one. They are all hardcore leftists and I think Barbara is going to beat whoever wins."
The Washington Post on Wednesday endorsed state Senator Jennifer Wexton as the "best qualified" Democratic candidate to face off against Comstock for the 10th District seat.