Rep. Paul Gosar (R-Ariz.) said that he wasn’t supposed to appear via video at a conference organized by a white nationalist figure, blaming the occurrence on a miscommunication from his staff.
Gosar told Politico in an interview that he was not supposed to go to far-right organizer Nick Fuentes’s America First Political Action Conference in March.
“It wasn’t supposed to go to Nick’s group,” Gosar said. At the time, he appeared at the conference in a prerecorded video.
He told Politico that it was a “welcome video” that was supposed to be used by multiple organizations.
“We’re kind of short-handed,” Gosar said. “And there was miscommunication.”
Gosar and conservative firebrand Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) faced backlash within their own party after attending the conference. Greene went in person to the Orlando, Fla., event. At the time, she defended her participation, stating that she did not know Fuentes’s views.
Gosar told the outlet the prerecorded video was meant to go to groups such as Conservative Political Action Conference.
“The young people that were being misled by somebody — we should be trying to mentor, trying to change them. I’ve given up … on dealing with Nick. Nick’s got a problem with his mouth,” Gosar said, according to Politico.
After the appearance, several leaders in the Republican Party condemned Gosar and Greene, including House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (Calif.)
“There’s no place in our party for any of this,” McCarthy said at the time.
McCarthy said he would meet with Gosar, but Gosar told Politico he already explained the miscommunication to McCarthy and didn’t see a need for a meeting.
The Hill has reached out to Gosar’s office for additional comment.