State Rep. Candice Keller of Middletown stirred controversy over the weekend with a social media post claiming that mass shootings are caused by same-sex marriage, marijuana use, violent video games, former President Barack Obama and protesting, among other things.
Keller says she has received threats due to the statements and is staying away from the State House as a result.
The Republican state lawmaker posted on her personal Facebook page following a mass shooting in Dayton that claimed nine lives and another in El Paso in which 20 people were killed. Authorities are still investigating the motive behind the Dayton mass shooting. The shooter in El Paso is believed to have posted a lengthy manifesto against immigrants before his killing spree.
Screenshots purportedly of Keller’s post, which has since been locked from public view, read:
After every mass shooting, the liberals start the blame game. Why not place the blame where it belongs?
The breakdown of the traditional American family (thank you, transgender, homosexual marriage and drag queen advocates); fatherlessness, a subject no one discusses or believes is relevant; the ignoring of violent video games; the relaxing of laws against criminals (open borders); the acceptance of recreational marijuana; failed school policies (hello, parents who defend misbehaving students): disrespect to law enforcement (thank you, Obama); hatred of our veterans (thank you, professional athletes who hate our flag and National Anthem); the Dem Congress, many members whom are openly anti-Semitic; the culture, which totally ignores the importance of God and the church (until they elect a president); state officeholders, who have no interest whatsoever in learning about our constitution and the Second Amendment; and snowflakes, who can’t accept a duly-elected President.
Did I forget anybody? The list is long. And the fury will continue.
The post drew immediate rebuke from Democrats and other critics. The chair of the Butler County Republican Party, Todd Hall, distanced himself from the remarks, as did Butler County Sheriff Richard K. Jones, himself known for controversial statements.
“Shame shame shame Candice Keller,” Jones tweeted yesterday. In a separate tweet, Jones called on Keller to resign.
Keller is running for state Senate next year. Jones has endorsed her primary opponent, state Rep. George Lang.
Ohio GOP Chair Jane Timken also called for Keller’s resignation today in a statement.
“While our nation was in utter shock over the acts of violence in El Paso and Dayton, Republican State Representative Candice Keller took to social media to state why she thought these acts were happening,” her statement reads. “Candice Keller’s Facebook post was shocking and utterly unjustifiable. Our nation is reeling from these senseless acts of violence and public servants should be working to bring our communities together, not promoting divisiveness.”
Keller told The Hamilton Journal-News that the post sounded like one she made, but that she was uncertain if it had been edited. Keller also confirmed to The Cincinnati Enquirer that the post was hers and had been hidden from public view.
It’s not the first time Keller has courted controversy. In 2017, she appeared on a radio show hosted by Brian “Sonny” Thomas, who has espoused white nationalist views. Keller has said she did not know about Thomas’ ideology until after she appeared on his show.
Earlier this year, Keller was co-sponsor of a so-called “Heartbeat Bill” that sought to outlaw abortions as soon as six weeks after conception. Though slated to become law in July, a federal judge blocked the bill, saying it violated a woman’s constitutional right to an abortion.
This article appears in Jul 31 – Aug 7, 2019.
