Republican Candidate in Staten Island Recorded Herself Saying “Heil Hitler”

Leticia Remauro, the Republican candidate for Staten Island Borough President, is facing criticism and pushes to drop out after she took a video of herself saying “Heil Hitler” and posted it online.

Remauro was leading a protest against state coronavirus restrictions on restaurants and bars on December 2nd was filming herself when she announced, “We have to come together with the small business community, with Staten Island to stand up for our right — the right to pay taxes — so that we can pay the salaries of these good men and women, who, yes, are only doing their jobs.

She continued, screaming, “But, not for nothing, sometimes you got to say, ‘Heil Hitler.’ ”

In the ensuring backlash, Remaurco resigned from the Board of the Staten Island Hebrew Public Charter School.

The Staten Island Republican Committee condemned her actions in a statement, saying, “We are shocked to learn of the grotesque, divisive, and hurtful words uttered by Leticia Remauro. This conduct has no place in our political discourse.”

In an attempt to apologize, she told the New York Daily News she had meant to say “mein Führer.” She also told the local news site SIlive.com that she is “very, very acutely aware of the impact of the Holocaust” and used the phrase because, from her perspective, the coronavirus restrictions on indoor dining are comparable to the actions of the Nazis in Germany.

She previously served as a campaign aide to Republican Rep. Nicole Malliotakis. Malliotakis released a statement calling her language “shocking and wrong,” and said “At a time when anti-Semitism is on the rise across our city and especially on Staten Island, there is no excuse for such words being uttered.”

Two North Shore City Council candidates, Kamillah Hanks and Mike Schnall have called on Remauro to withdraw from the Borough President race, and for Campaign Finance Board to deny her campaign funds.

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smarcus@hamodia.com