Former Laxalt staffer made antisemitic remarks

Adam Laxalt’s campaign for U.S. Senate distanced itself Monday from a former campaign staff member who made antisemitic comments on Twitter.

Michael Pecjak, who operated a Laxalt fan account on Twitter with the username “LaxaltStan,” worked for Laxalt’s campaign as a field representative up until late August when he was terminated. He also worked as the political director for Carolina Serrano, who ran unsuccessfully in the Republican primary for Congressional District 1.

Pecjak, as first reported by Jewish Insider, tweeted comments on a Laxalt-fan account linked to himself denigrating Jewish people and other groups. In response to a user who tweeted on Oct. 4, “Anti semitism check: Type ‘the Jews are’ and let your phone fill in the rest” Pecjak responded, “The Jews are not a religious sect and are a cult.”

On Oct. 6, he tweeted that he was not sure if he was a fan of Breitbart, the far-right commentary website, anymore, citing a screenshot that said Breitbart was a “pro-Jewish website with a reputation for treating women and minorities well.”

Jewish Insider, an online publication that covers politics, philanthropy and business news, found that the operator of the “LaxaltStan” account told followers to follow his main account, @MichaelPecjak. Both accounts, however, have since been deleted. Pecjak, who also uses the last name Pecjak-Sanchez, did not return multiple calls and text messages from the Review-Journal on Monday morning. In the afternoon, his phone number was no longer in service.

Operative fired

Laxalt’s campaign press secretary Brian Freimuth said Pecjak is no longer affiliated with the campaign in any way, although he could not say why the campaign terminated Pecjak.

“The bigoted opinions expressed on the twitter account certainly don’t reflect the views of Adam Laxalt or this campaign,” Freimuth said in a statement Monday. “Adam’s public and private life show that he believes there should be zero tolerance for antisemitism in any form and any suggestion otherwise is a politically motivated lie. Adam will always stand shoulder to shoulder with the Jewish community.”

Laxalt’s Democratic incumbent opponent Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto told the Review-Journal after a news conference Monday that Laxalt should have condemned the comments earlier.

“He should have said it last night or back then when they let the individual go. He’s never once condemned anything, anytime you shine a light on it, that’s when he’ll say something,” Cortez Masto said.

“I am proud to stand with our Jewish community here in Nevada, and I will always, always fight against antisemitism and discrimination in all forms. Because this — this is Nevada, and in Nevada nobody gets left behind,” Cortez Masto said.

Other criticism

Laxalt’s campaign previously received criticism from the Jewish Democratic Council of America for campaigning with Michael Flynn, who has previously made insensitive comments comparing Republicans in the U.S. to Holocaust victims.

The Republican Jewish Coalition, which endorsed Laxalt’s campaign, stood by Laxalt. Executive Director Matt Brooks in an interview with the Review-Journal called the Jewish Insider story a “total nothing burger.”

“You’re talking about a staffer whose comments came to light long after he’s been terminated by the campaign. Laxalt has been outspoken and committed to combating antisemitism wherever it raises its head,” Brooks said.

That former staffer’s comments “doesn’t reflect upon Adam at all,” Brooks said.

Antisemitism on the rise

Antisemitic remarks and actions have been on the rise in recent years. The Anti-Defamation League Center on Extremism found a 34 percent increase in antisemitic incidents throughout the U.S. from 2020 to 2021, which is the highest number on record since the league began tracking incidents in 1979.

Brooks said that the rise in antisemitic remarks is not a partisan, political issue and should be something all Americans stand up against, whether the remarks are coming from Kanye, or people on the right and left side of the aisle.

Cortez Masto’s Democratic fellow senator, Jacky Rosen, who is the third Jewish woman to serve in the Senate, said no issue threatens Jewish people more than the “alarming rise of antisemitism.”

“Hate has no place in our communities, not in our state and especially not in our politics,” Rosen said at Cortez Masto’s news conference.

Contact Jessica Hill at jehill@reviewjournal.com. Follow @jess_hillyeah on Twitter.