Brahm Resnik should not have to apologize for Knowing History.

Arizona Republicans like Kelli Ward and Paul Gosar are upset with journalist and Sunday Square Off Host Brahm Resnik.

Why?

Because he knows World History.

This story begins on August 10 when the Arizona Republican Party issued an image (see above) on its Twitter account of a picturesque Arizona landscape with the caption of “One People, One Land, One Arizona…We’re all in this Together.”

Well, it did not take long for many people, including Resnik, to notice the similarity of this caption with this:

This is a German National Socialist Campaign Poster from the 1930s which translates to “One People, One Land, One Leader.”

Note the similarity to the Arizona Republican Tweet.

Mr. Resnik, like some of the others that are historically literate, commented in a tweet:

“Pretty picture. Just a thought here: A tweet that echoes ‘Ein volk. Ein Reich. Ein Fuhrer’ – likely unintentional, because who knows history these days, right? – isn’t a great look at the present moment.”

Of course, Arizona Republicans demanded an apology from the Sunday Square Off Host which Mr. Resnik did on August 13 in another tweet.

Mr. Resnik, and the others who reacted to this tweet because they know history should not have to apologize for pointing out what was likely another historic example of Republicans throwing dog whistles to the nativist fringe right in order to signal “we are with you” and enlist their support.

There have been other examples of Republican Dog Whistles in the United States, including Arizona, throughout the last 40 years as they have been peddling racist dog whistles to the fringe right ever since the old Dixiecrats took over the party in the 1960s and 1970s.

People should remember that Ronald Reagan opened his 1980 Presidential Campaign in Philadelphia, Mississippi (the site where three Civil Rights workers were killed for wanting to register people to vote in the 1960’s), calling for the restoration of emphasizing states rights.

That was a clear dog whistle from the Reagan camp.

Then there was the Dog Whistle from the George H.W. Bush campaign in 1988 with the Willie Horton ad that helped propel Reagans Vice President to the White House over Michael Dukakis.

Coming to the recent past, remember this Dog Whistle from the Trump Campaign in 2016:

Notice the Dog Whistle with calling Hillary Clinton “Most Corrupt Candidate Ever!” within the image of a Star of David.

Or Mr. Trump’s (the candidate that received the endorsement of the Ku Klux Klan) closing campaign commercial in 2016 which revives the dog whistle of a Jewish global conspiracy to run the world economy, complete with images of noted Jewish financiers,  at the expense of everyone.

Returning to Arizona, does everyone remember this picture of our Governor posing with members of the nativist Patriot Movement:

Was this a Dog Whistle to the Fringe Right or an ignorant mistake? It is worrisome no matter what the answer is.

Finally, it is particularly galling that among the loudest critics of Resnik are Kelli Ward and Paul Gosar.

This is the same Kelli Ward that:

• Along with Andy Biggs, spoke at a far-right rally attended by members of the Patriot Movement.
• Along with Andy Biggs, attended a luncheon where a noted Anti Semite was an honored guest.

This is the same Paul Gosar who:

• Enjoys following racist Twitter accounts.
• Has endorsed a known Islamophobic for a Florida Congressional Seat.

These two, with their public outrage towards Resnik, give new meaning to the phrase “Consider the Source.”

Republicans have not stopped using these dog whistles and it is right that Mr. Resnik and the others who saw the Arizona Republican Tweet for what it was.

For some Republicans to offer a tweet from Barack Obama where similar language is used is either an obvious fraud, used to shift attention from the dog whistles the Grand Ole Party has been utilizing for close to 50 years or a serious misreading of history.

Mr. Resnik and the others who have exposed, yet again, what the Republicans would do for political gain, should be praised and commended, not punished and asked to apologize.