Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman, the Republican nominee for governor, lit a political firestorm Wednesday when he told a cable TV host that Brad Lander "would be a camp guard in a concentration camp if he could," a shot tied directly to Lander’s views on Israel. The remark triggered immediate calls for an apology from Lander and a wave of condemnations from Democrats and Jewish leaders who said dragging the Holocaust into a campaign attack crossed a line.
The comment, delivered during a Wednesday-night appearance on Newsmax, was first reported by NY1. According to the outlet, Lander demanded an apology, while his allies and Jewish community leaders quickly blasted the comparison.
Lander denounced the remark as "far-right MAGA bigotry" and defended his Jewish identity, telling The Washington Post that "Never Again! means never again to anyone." He added that standing up for Palestinian human rights does not make him any less serious about fighting antisemitism.
Democrats Demand Apology, GOP Pushes Back
Gov. Kathy Hochul called the comment "absolutely despicable" and said Blakeman's decision to double down on it "disqualifies him from public office," The Washington Post reported. Rep. Jerry Nadler branded the comparison a "grotesque desecration of the memory of 6 million Jews," sharpening the backlash from top New York Democrats.
The New York Republican State Committee, however, closed ranks around Blakeman. State GOP spokesman David Laska accused Democrats of tolerating antisemitism, according to the NY1 report, turning the uproar into yet another proxy fight over which party is really standing up for Jewish voters as Blakeman heads toward a November matchup with Hochul.
Israel Debate Reshaped NYC Primaries
Positions on Israel and U.S. policy toward Gaza have been a central fault line in recent New York primaries, and Lander's rise has underscored that divide. CBS News noted that Lander told supporters he would be "one of the Jewish members of Congress most willing to stand up for Palestinian human rights" while also opposing antisemitism, and reported his win in New York's 10th Congressional District, which covers Lower Manhattan and parts of Brooklyn.
As the fight over rhetoric escalated, Blakeman later told the Washington Examiner that he "went too far" with the concentration camp comparison, though he insisted he still believed his broader point about Lander's stance. For now, the episode has become another flashpoint in a season where debates over Israel and Palestine are reshaping local contests across the city.
