So much for distancing himself from Nick Fuentes.
On Friday, Rep. Paul Gosar promoted a film about Fuentes portraying the white nationalist and Christian fascist as the “most canceled man in America.”
“The persecution against Christians and Conservatives by the Biden Regime brings great dishonor to our country,” Gosar wrote on Twitter, sharing a trailer for the film. “If Americans do not have the freedom to dissent, then they have no freedom at all.” (Gosar has since deleted the tweet.)
Gosar has rubbed soldiers with the 24-year-old Fuentes since he came onto the political scene, notably appearing at Fuentes’ America First Political Action Conference in February 2021 and meeting with the white nationalist the following day.
Prior to that, both Gosar and Fuentes were heavily involved in the so-called “Stop the Steal” campaign, which sought to overturn the 2020 presidential election and keep former President Donald Trump in power. Gosar preemptively sought a pardon from Trump for his role in the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol but did not receive one, while Fuentes has been subpoenaed by the House select committee investigating the attack.
In April of 2021, following his harassment of airline employees, his participation in the so-called “Stop the Steal” campaign and appearance at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, not to mention his threat to lawmakers who certified Joe Biden’s win, Fuentes was placed on a no-fly list. He found an ally in Gosar. The Arizona congressman defended Fuentes, writing a letter to the FBI accusing the agency of abusing its power.
Fuentes, in turn, applauded the congressman. “There is some hope, maybe, for America First in Congress,” Fuentes said on a May episode of his “America First” podcast. “And that is thanks to—almost exclusively—to Rep. Paul Gosar.”
Since Gosar lent legitimacy to the young extremist with his initial appearance at AFPAC, America First’s ranks have swelled. When Gosar appeared by video at the 2022 AFPAC conference, he was joined by other far-right politicians, including fellow House Republican Marjorie Taylor Greene and Arizona state Rep. Wendy Rogers.
A few months later, Gosar expressed frustration with Fuentes, stating, “I’ve given up … on dealing with Nick. Nick’s got a problem with his mouth.” He also claimed he didn’t mean for his taped remarks to appear at the conference, and that he didn’t know about Fuentes’ “divisive” background before his initial appearance in 2021.
But with today’s tweet, it appears now that all is well between the far-right congressman and misogynist white nationalist. Unless, of course, it was just another misunderstanding.
Update 10/3/22: This story has been updated to reflect news that Rep. Paul Gosar deleted his tweet promoting Nick Fuentes on Oct. 1.