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Dem seeking NY swing seat defends embracing extremist who said Hamas is ‘a thousands times better’ than Israel
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A progressive Democrat vying for a hotly contested New York swing seat in November’s midterm elections is defending her association with controversial far-left streamer Hasan Piker.
Effie Phillips-Staley is facing backlash from her own party as she seeks the nomination to take on Rep. Mike Lawler, R-N.Y., after she went on Piker’s livestream in late March and called Israel an «apartheid state» and accused the Jewish nation of genocide in Gaza.
Democratic county chairs within the suburban New York district Phillips-Staley is running to represent put out a joint statement denouncing Phillips-Staley for participating in the «normalization of antisemitic, racist and misogynist rhetoric.»
Despite the intraparty criticism, the candidate doubled down. She told Fox News Digital that Piker, 34, provides a vehicle for Democrats to reach young voters.
Online streamer Hasan Piker invited Democratic House candidate Effie Phillips-Staley on his livestream, which has nearly 3 million followers. (Selcuk Acar/Anadolu via Getty Images)
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«While I don’t align with every word Hasan Piker has ever said, we recognize the massive value of a platform that engages millions of young people in the Democratic process,» Phillips-Staley said.
«As Democrats, our job is to build bridges, not burn them,» she added in a statement to Fox News Digital. «We should be inviting young people into the process by building a coalition rooted in collective humanity. I will always fight for universal human rights, and Palestinian self determination while standing firmly against anti-Semitism.»
Piker once said «America deserved 9/11.» He has since characterized that remark as «inappropriate.»
The streamer has been sharply criticized for calling some Orthodox Jews «inbred» and once described a listener who voiced disapproval of Hamas’ Oct. 7 attacks on Israel as a «bloodthirsty violent pig dog.» He has denied charges of antisemitism despite continuing to argue that Hamas is «a thousand times better» than Israel.
Phillips-Staley, who is endorsed by the left-wing Working Families Party and former progressive Rep. Jamaal Bowman, D-N.Y., has largely defended Piker’s controversial comments. She has argued that critics have taken some of his remarks out of context and that he is «on the right side of history» on issues related to Israel and the Palestinian people, during an appearance on the Left Hook podcast.
A campaign spokesman for Rep. Lawler slammed Phillips-Staley’s defense of Piker.
«Embracing an antisemite who praised the 9/11 attacks and sympathizes with terrorists is no longer disqualifying in the modern Democratic Party, and Effie Phillips-Staley is proving that in real time,» Ciro Riccardi told Fox News Digital. «Even worse, her Democratic opponents refusing to call Effie out for such offensive behavior shows you just how radical you need to be to win a Democratic primary today.»
«Middle of the road voters should take notice and ask themselves whether this who they really want in control of the House,» he added, referring to House Democrats.
National Republican Congressional Committee spokeswoman Maureen O’Toole was also critical of Phillips-Staley’s primary opponents — former Biden administration national security official Cait Conley and Rockland County legislator Beth Davidson — for not condemning Phillips-Staley’s appearance on Piker’s livestream.
Conley and Davidson have expressed support for Israel, and the former is backed by the pro-Israel group, Democratic Majority for Israel PAC.
Spokespersons for Davidson and Conley did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Democratic House candidate Effie Phillips-Staley has defended her appearance on controversial personality Hasan Piker’s livestream. (Udo Salters/Patrick McMullan via Getty Images : Taylor Hill/FilmMagic)
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Phillips-Staley is among a growing number of progressive Democrats embracing Piker ahead of November’s midterm elections.
Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., Ro Khanna, D-Calif., and New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani have been interviewed by Piker on his show.
Piker recently headlined a campaign event earlier in April for Sen. Bernie Sanders’ preferred Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed.
But not all Democrats think the party’s embracing of Piker is a good idea.
A swath of Democratic lawmakers, including Sens. Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich., and Cory Booker, D-N.J., have distanced themselves from the far-left influencer’s platform, citing concern about his past statements.
Phillips-Staley maintains that her hardening anti-Israel stance is the pathway to victory in the battleground district this November.
«Advancing someone who is so close on this issue to Mike Lawler would be a genuine mistake when this is something that the overwhelming majorities of the Democratic party’s base are demanding a separation from,» Phillips-Staley told Piker, referring to Israel.
Just 13% of Democrats hold a positive view of Israel compared to 57% who view the country negatively, according to a March NBC News survey. Among independents, just over 20% see Israel in a positive light.
It’s unclear if Phillips-Staley’s approach will work in the southern Hudson Valley seat, which is one of the most heavily Jewish districts in the country.
«I’ve taken a very … what I hope that people perceive to be an authentic and progressive human rights-focused platform and we’re going to test it here too,» Phillips-Staley told the Breaking Points podcast.
Rep. Mike Lawler, R-N.Y., leaves a House Republican Conference meeting at the Capitol Hill Club on July 15, 2025. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc)
Lawler successfully fended off a challenge from Rep. Mondaire Jones, D-N.Y., in 2024. The nonpartisan Cook Political Report rates his reelection contest as a «toss-up.»
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Divisions over Israel are not the only area where Lawler and Phillips-Staley have clashed.
Lawler’s campaign filed a lawsuit on Tuesday alleging the Phillips-Staley campaign forged voter signatures on petitions to be eligible for the Empire State’s June primary. The campaign submitted dozens of sworn affidavits from voters in the district who alleged they never put their names on petitions submitted by the Phillips-Staley campaign.
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Blue state residents ‘fleeing in droves’ after ‘insane’ progressive takeover, says top state attorney
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A top state attorney in Democrat-controlled Maryland says he has had enough and is throwing in the towel after saying the Old Line State has suffered an «insane» «ultra-progressive» takeover.
In an interview with Fox News Digital, Haven Shoemaker, state attorney for Maryland’s Carroll County, said that after decades in public service, he is «sick to death» of the policies that «emanate» from the state capital in Annapolis. He said he is especially disgusted with Maryland’s «sanctuary» policies and the high taxes he said are being levied in part to pay for more services for illegal immigrants.
«Maryland has become California on the Chesapeake,» said Shoemaker. «It only gets worse. It’s not getting better. And at some point, I just had to make a personal decision that it’s time to throw in the towel and head for what I believe are greener pastures.»
Shoemaker is not the only one. He said that he sees Marylanders giving up on the state «all the time.»
«The State of Maryland has one of the worst outward migration numbers of any state in the country right now,» he said. «So, I don’t know who’s going to be the last to foot the bill for the profligate spending that Annapolis likes to engage in, but it’s not going to be me, I can tell you that.»
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Marylanders are «fleeing in droves» under Democratic Gov. Wes Moore and the Democra-controlled State Assembly, according to Carroll County State Attorney Haven Shoemaker. (Mark Wilson/Getty Images; Heather Diehl/Getty Images)
Moore’s office did not respond to Fox News Digital’s questions. Fox News Digital also reached out to Maryland House Speaker Joseline A. Peña-Melnyk and Senate President Bill Ferguson for comment.
Born in Baltimore in the 1960s, Shoemaker spent three decades in local and state politics before taking the job as Carroll County’s top prosecutor in 2023. His career in public service includes seven years as mayor of Hampstead, Maryland, four years as a Carroll County commissioner and nine years in the Maryland House of Delegates. He rose to the role of House Minority Whip for the Maryland Republican Party.
Despite years deeply involved in state politics, Shoemaker said his decision to abandon Maryland has been a long time coming.
«I’ve been contemplating this move for a while, but the linchpin for me was this most recent legislative session where they essentially made Maryland a sanctuary state for illegal immigrants,» he told Fox News Digital.
Earlier this year, the Maryland General Assembly passed an emergency measure to ban local and state law enforcement agencies from cooperating with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) through what is known as the 287(g) program. Maryland Democratic Gov. Wes Moore, whose name has been floated as a possible 2028 Democratic presidential candidate, signed the bill into law.
While emphasizing that law enforcement would continue cooperating with ICE on deporting individuals who «pose a risk to public safety,» Moore lauded the bill, saying, «We will not allow untrained, unqualified and unaccountable agents to deputize our brave local law enforcement officers,» according to WYPR.
While signing the measure, Moore stressed his view that «Maryland is a community of immigrants,» saying, «It is not our weakness, it’s our strength.»
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The Maryland State Capitol building in Annapolis, Md. (Getty Images)
Shoemaker, meanwhile, said that Maryland’s sanctuary-style policies are «just part of the problem.»
«In addition to that, their tax policy here is horrendous,» he said. He pointed to how state leaders raised taxes in Maryland last year by $1.6 billion.
The tax raise was passed by the State Assembly and approved by Democratic Gov. Wes Moore as part of a $67 billion state budget in 2025. The raise was part of a plan to address roughly a $3.3 billion budget deficit. Maryland’s budget is relatively large compared to other states, despite the state ranking 18th in population and 42nd in land size.
Shoemaker said that state leaders are «already looking at a structural deficit going into next year’s budget of another billion and a half or so.» He asserted the «handwriting is on the wall» that «Maryland politicians are beholden to their ultra-progressive base.»
Maryland Gov. Wes Moore, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz speak to members of the media outside the White House in Washington, D.C., on July 3, 2024. (Yuri Gripas/Abaca/Bloomberg)
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In the end, Shoemaker said that he has finally decided to escape to the South and head for North Carolina.
«A lot of taxpayers from across the State of Maryland are fleeing in droves,» he said. He added a warning to Moore and other Maryland leaders: «If you want to staunch the bleeding that’s occurring, maybe you should rethink your policies.»
maryland, democratic party, immigration, taxes, illegal immigrants, sanctuary cities
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Donald Trump anuncia una prórroga de la tregua entre Israel y el Líbano, pero no hay avances sobre Irán
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Senate hopeful says US should be ‘far more cooperative’ with China to fight climate change
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Maine Democrat Graham Platner is vowing to pursue closer ties with China if elected to the Senate, arguing that the U.S. should be «far more cooperative» with the communist state on issues like climate change.
«I think our position towards China should be one of cooperation instead of one of opposition,» Platner said during a livestream in February, arguing it would be «absurd» to have an aggressive approach toward Beijing, citing its trade relationship with the United States.
«I am not a China hawk, not by any stretch of the imagination,» he continued. «I think we need to be figuring out how to integrate, or at least be far more cooperative, especially to fight challenges like climate change.»
Platner, a staunch progressive, is running to unseat Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, in November’s midterm elections. His views on China appear to be well outside the political mainstream and place him to the left of many Democratic lawmakers, who see the country as the United States’ most formidable strategic competitor or a geopolitical threat.
Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner has advocated for increased cooperation with China, citing its trade value to the United States and the need to partner on global challenges such as climate change. (Kevin Frayer/Getty Images)
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The Senate hopeful has also argued that fascism followed by climate change is the top two challenges facing the United States on the world stage.
«Before the rise of fascism, I would have said that the biggest challenge we have … globally is climate change,» Platner, an oyster farmer and combat veteran, said during the livestream.
Platner referred to federal immigration officers as «armed thugs,» accusing them of murdering American citizens, an apparent reference to two fatal shootings during an immigration enforcement surge in Minneapolis earlier this year.
He has previously advocated for abolishing Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and dragging agents in front of Congress to testify about their work.
Platner’s campaign did not respond to a request for comment.
The Republican National Committee (RNC) sharply criticized Platner’s remarks in a statement to Fox News Digital.
«Graham Platner’s soft-on-communism radical ideology would lift up dictators, threaten America’s national security, and cost American lives,» RNC spokeswoman Kristen Cianci said in a statement. «He has no business in the Senate or any position of power.»
Senate candidate Graham Platner, D-Maine, acknowledges a large crowd during a town hall at Bunker Brewing in Portland, Maine, on Sept. 25, 2025. (Daryn Slover/Portland Press Herald via AP)
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Platner is facing Maine Gov. Janet Mills, D-Maine, in an increasingly nasty primary that has split factions of the Democratic Party. Leading progressives, including Sens. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., have endorsed him while Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., who leads the party’s establishment wing, is supporting Mills.
Sanders and Warren have doubled down on their embrace of Platner despite the political newcomer’s bevy of controversial online posts and scrutiny over a Nazi-linked tattoo that he has had removed.
Platner called for deposing Schumer as Democratic leader, weakening the filibuster to ease the passage of left-wing legislation and adding seats to the Supreme Court to dilute the power of the conservative majority, in an interview with NBC News this week.
Senate candidate Graham Platner of Maine and two-term Gov. Janet Mills are competing in the state’s Democratic Senate primary. (Sophie Park/Getty Images; Scott Eisen/Getty Images)
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The Sanders-backed oyster farmer has carved out a dominant lead in recent polling ahead of the June primary, despite Mills serving as the most senior-ranking Democrat in the state.
Collins is running for a sixth Senate term in the blue-leaning state. The nonpartisan Cook Political Report rates the contest as a «toss-up.»
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