For Immediate Release
Wednesday, August 23rd, 2023
Contact: Olivia Taylor-Puckett, otpuckett@azdem.org
Lake to Take Her Election Denial Lies to the Debate for Impeached and Indicted Former President
ARIZONA — Tonight, Kari Lake will work the Republican presidential debate on behalf of Donald Trump, the only president to be twice impeached and four times indicted. Lake’s extremism cost her the gubernatorial race she continues to litigate, and has caused both state and national Republican figures to”bite their nails” at the prospect of her Senate campaign launch.
As Lake continues to take every opportunity to spread conspiracy theories ahead of her “less-than-welcome” Senate run, let’s take a look at Kari’s extensive record of extremism, conspiracy theories, and election denialism:
- Lake believes that abortion is “the ultimate sin.” She would ban abortion without exceptions for rape, incest, or the life of the mother, and supports Arizona’s territorial-era ban that would put doctors in prison.
- Lake trafficks in QAnon and other conspiracy theories far outside the mainstream, including: claiming that JFK was killed by the military industrial complex, and that the Pope was arrested for child sex trafficking.
- Lake not only promotes QAnon conspiracies, but is deeply tied to neo-Nazis, antisemites, and white nationalists. These relationships include: Congressman Paul Gosar who himself has “lengthy ties to white nationalists, pro-Nazi bloggers, and the far-right fringe,” AZ State Senator Wendy Rogers who shares antisemitic memes and called for “hanging her political enemies.”
- Lake continues to deny the validity of both the 2020 presidential election and her own 2022 gubernatorial election loss despite multiple losses at every level of Arizona state courts.
- Lake pushes conspiracy theories about the January 6th insurrection, calling it a “staged riot” and a “fedsurrection” and even had a fundraising event with an insurrectionist who pled guilty to charges related to January 6th.
- Lake has flirted with stoking political violence, including saying that if the U.S. Department of Justice wants to “get to President Trump [… they’re] going to have to go through 75 million Americans just like me, and I’m going to tell you, most of us are card-carrying members of the NRA,” which was widely denounced as creating a “dangerous atmosphere” where violence becomes more accepted.
“Kari Lake’s rap sheet of election denialism, connections to extremists, and peddling conspiracy theories make her the perfect advocate for her twice impeached, four times indicted Donald Trump, not for Arizonans,” said Olivia Taylor-Puckett, Senior Communications Advisor at the Arizona Democratic Party.
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