The Republican congressional primary race to replace Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D) is finally beginning to simmer as retired Air Force General Chris Eddy and Brian Leib take a jab at one another over a recent and alleged “antisemitic” tweet that former Trump official, Gen. Michael Flynn, made about political “foreign interference.”
Gen. Flynn made the statement in response to a tweet about an interview former Fox News host Tucker Carlson conducted with Rep. Thomas Massie (D).
“Just a reminder that only one foreign government has a baby sitter (sic) designated to each of our political representatives, overseeing every action they take. Nearly 100% of our politicians have an ‘AIPAC Guy,” stated the tweet.
Flynn’s response asked members of Congress if they had an “AIPAC handler.”
"This is called Foreign interference in the United States political system. Every member of the House and Senate should be asked directly, “Do you have an AIPAC handler?” stated Flynn.
Conservative radio show and TV host Mark Levin appeared surprised by Flynn’s statement, saying that the remark was unexpected.
“Wow. Who knew? At a time like this, they’re coming out of the closet, even some you’d never expect,” stated Levin on “X.”
Leib, who recently jumped into the congressional race in Florida’s 25th District and has landed the support of Reps. Cory Mills and Byron Donalds saw the statement as being antisemitic and used it to dig at his opponent Gen. Eddy.
"Don't get me wrong, I am thankful to General Flynn for his service to America, but attacking AIPAC with the same Antisemitic tropes that Jamaal Bowman, Ilhan Omar, and AOC are doing is not a good look for the General, stated Leib. “ I wonder if @Eddy4Congress has any thoughts about this post from General Flynn since he proudly accepted an endorsement from him last week. Will Chris Eddy condemn this tweet from Flynn? Fact: Comments about how@AIPAC has handlers is 100% Antisemitism and plays into the trope that Jews control politicians with money," stated Leib.
Eddy, who did receive the coveted Flynn endorsement, responded to The Floridian’s request for comment, defending Flynn for standing with former President Donald Trump.
Eddy said that his campaign wasn’t focuses on “historical tweets,” adding that Leib had some past tweets in his past that could be problematic for him.
“Lt Gen Flynn is a patriot who served our country and got set up by the establishment in an attempt to get President Trump. He stood by President Trump in the face of financial and reputational ruin. I stand by President Reagan’s 11th Commandment,” stated Eddy. “Our campaign doesn’t spend the day going through historical tweets, and my opponent should be grateful for that because there are some troubling ones from him. We are out getting votes every day and look forward to facing Congressman Wasserman Schultz in just over 4 months.”
Flynn’s tweet is historical if you consider a day-old statement to be historic.
The tweet was posted on June 24, 2024, at around 7 pm.
Leib told The Floridian that he stood by his statement and added that he called on Eddy to condemn Flynn’s antisemitic statement. Eddy is not expected to condemn Flynn.
Eddy and Leib face off in the August 20 primary election.
