Illinois Democrat Sean Casten, who found himself in hot water after his belief that President Donald Trump has a "tremendous amount in common" with terrorist Osama bin Laden was revealed by the Free Beacon, has also told voters there are "Nazis" in the White House.
Casten, the Democratic nominee in Illinois' sixth district, responded to the initial report by saying he regretted the bin Laden comparison and his words were "poorly chosen," but new video obtained by the Free Beacon indicates this type of language was used often by him on the campaign trail.
On two separate instances during his primary fight, he made reference to "Nazis and racists in the White House."
The two comments, both which can be viewed below, occurred during candidate forums hosted by anti-Trump "resistance" group Indivisible last year, the first in August and the second in October.
The two comments were nearly identical and appear to have been part of a go-to talking point.
"I don't think you need to be an engineer to know that it's a bad idea to have Nazis and racists in the White House," Casten said during the August event.
In October he only slightly amended his statement, saying, "Nobody should have to use a calculator to answer the question whether it's a good idea to have Nazis and racists in the White House."
Casten's campaign defended the comments in a statement to the Free Beacon.
"This White House has given voice and employment to white nationalists and their protectors," the campaign said. "And when Nazi-incited violence led to a death in Charlottesville, the President couldn't bring himself to stand up and denounce this hate. It is unacceptable that Peter Roskam has not done more to hold this administration accountable, and demand that people like Steve Bannon, Seb Gorka, Stephen Miller, and Ian Smith—the recently discovered DHS employee with white nationalist ties—not be given power in this administration."
It is unclear whether the campaign thinks any of the individuals it named are Nazis.
The comments are similar to the one Casten made comparing Trump to bin Laden, saying he thinks the two have a "tremendous amount in common."
"In many ways—and I don't mean to sound overly, I don't know, hyperbolic on this—Trump and Osama bin Laden have a tremendous amount in common," Casten can be heard saying in the above audio. "They have both figured out how to use the bully pulpit to activate marginalized young men."
Casten was criticized for his comparison by both the Illinois Republican Party and his Republican opponent, Rep. Peter Roskam, who called it "hateful, vicious language."
Casten's campaign responded to the bin Laden comment by saying his words were "poorly chosen," but also by defending the comparison of Trump to a terrorist.
"Sean believes that Donald Trump has gone out of his way to divide Americans for his own personal gain rather than bringing us together," the campaign said.