- Sign up HERE to our DC Insider newsletter- your guide to what's rocking Washington, rattling the White House and setting tongues wagging on the Hill
Senator Jon Ossoff accused Representative Mike Collins of hiring ‘half of the Third Reich’ to staff his congressional office during a bruising Georgia Senate debate on Thursday night.
asserted
Ossoff → sign → night
The Democrat steered question after question, on AI data centers, the Iran war, immigration and Flock cameras, back to his Republican rival’s alleged ties to extremists.
asserted
Democrat → steer → extremists
‘And that’s the problem, Mike.
asserted
that → ’ → ?
It’s not just that you’ve hired half of the Third Reich to staff your congressional office and you have promoted neo-Nazi content online,’ Ossoff said.
asserted
Ossoff → ’ → content
He had set the tone in his opening statement, accusing Collins of dishonoring the state through his ‘personal bigotry and his widely documented ties to white nationalists.’
Earlier Thursday, Collins was hit with more dour news:
asserted
Collins → set → news
The Senate GOP’s top super PAC decided to shift nearly $2 million in advertising from Georgia to neighboring South Carolina, which is also hosting a Senate race, according to the tracker AdImpact Politics.
uncertain
which → decide → tracker
Collins attempted to hit back, dismissing Ossoff as a wealthy liberal out of touch with ordinary Americans.
asserted
Collins → attempt → Americans
‘He’s a trust fund kid who’s never had a job in his life,’ Collins said.
asserted
Collins → ’ → life
Even on AI data centers, Ossoff found a way back.
asserted
Ossoff → find → way
He attacked Collins for backing President Donald Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill, arguing it had hurt Georgians financially, then pivoted straight to the extremism allegations.
asserted
it → attack → allegations
Georgia Senator Jon Ossoff opened the debate by accusing Represenative Mike Collins of bringing dishonor to the state through his 'personal bigotry and his widely documented ties to white nationalists'
asserted
Ossoff → open → nationalists
'He's a trust fund kid who's never had a job in his life,' Collins jabbed back at Ossoff
A family photo featured on Representative Mike Collins' campaign site features his daughter Summer Collins with her husband, David Alan Scheer II, a social media influencer who has been accused of sharing antisemitic conspiracy theories, white-nationalist material and Nazi-associated imagery
Ossoff’s attack came after the moderator pressed Collins about two men: former staffer Preston Parra and his son-in-law, David Alan Scheer II.
asserted
moderator → have → law
Parra, a former Collins intern and contractor, runs an X account that has featured Nazi imagery, racial slurs and references to ‘White Power’, alongside nearly nude selfies.
asserted
that → run → selfies
A Collins campaign spokesman called the posts ‘vile’ and ‘completely unhinged’ and said Parra has no affiliation with the congressman’s office or campaign.
Scheer, a fitness and masculinity influencer with 1.5 million followers, has been accused of sharing antisemitic conspiracy theories, white nationalist material and Nazi-associated propaganda.
asserted
Scheer → call → theories
He liked a comment quoting ‘Erika’, a German marching song from the Nazi era.
asserted
He → like → era
He is registered to vote at a property Collins owns and has appeared in campaign photographs.
asserted
Collins → register → photographs
Preston Parra, 24, interned for Collins before working on behalf of his campaign.
asserted
Parra → intern → campaign
He is a self-proclaimed 'racist twink' who regularly posts sexual and derogatory content despite running a political firm
Collins accused Ossoff of spreading inflammatory claims about his family, never directly denouncing his son-in-law’s online persona
'If John Lewis was marching from Selma to Montgomery, Mike Collins would be grabbing a billy club,' Ossoff said
'I've condemned racism, anti-Semitism, hate.
uncertain
I → proclaim → hate
I don't care where the source is,' Collins said.
asserted
Collins → care → ?
We have no place in this world for that'
asserted
We → have → that
Collins has said Scheer plays no role in his campaign and that he does not share his son-in-law’s views.
asserted
he → say → views
Asked by the moderator what family dinners looked like at his home, Collins rejected the premise and accused Ossoff of spreading inflammatory claims about his family.
uncertain
Collins → ask → family
He did not denounce Scheer by name.
asserted
He → denounce → name
‘That’s my family.
asserted
That → ’ → ?
And the craziness Jon Ossoff is spewing,’ Collins said.
asserted
Collins → spew → craziness
He said family members had received death threats and pointed to the arrest this week of a New York man accused of threatening him and Scheer.
asserted
members → say → him
‘I’ve condemned racism, anti-Semitism, hate.
asserted
I → condemn → racism
I don’t care where the source is,’ Collins said.
asserted
Collins → care → ?
‘It’s wrong.
asserted
It → ’ → ?
We have no place in this world for that.’
asserted
We → have → that
Ossoff kept pressing.
asserted
Ossoff → keep → ?
‘Imagine running for the US Senate while neo-Nazi propaganda is disseminated to an audience of millions from your home,’ he said.
asserted
he → imagine → home
He also invoked the late civil rights leader John Lewis, a towering figure in Georgia politics.
asserted
He → invoke → politics
‘If John Lewis was marching from Selma to Montgomery, Mike Collins would be grabbing a billy club,’ Ossoff said.
asserted
Ossoff → march → club
Collins sought to paint Ossoff as an out-of-touch liberal, repeatedly raising his links to Michigan Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed and far-left streamer Hasan Piker.
asserted
Collins → seek → Sayed
The pair also clashed over a House Ethics Committee investigation Collins faces over allegations involving his former chief of staff, Brandon Phillips.
asserted
Collins → clash → staff
The probe centers on payments to Phillips’ girlfriend, Caroline Craze, who was hired as an intern and allegedly received more than $10,000.
uncertain
who → center → 10,000
Witnesses told investigators they never saw her working in the office.
asserted
her → tell → office
Collins dismissed the accusations as a 'nothing-burger,' denied wrongdoing and challenged the House Ethics Committee to release its findings.
asserted
Collins → dismiss → findings
Ossoff has maintained a lead in public polling throughout the race, with surveys consistently putting the Democratic incumbent ahead of Collins.
asserted
surveys → maintain → Collins
…and 3 more, not listed.
The Aporia
