Paul Gosar, a far-right Arizona congressman who has been stumping for the state’s Trump-endorsed gubernatorial candidate, appeared to approve of a constituent who claimed he’d shot an immigrant on his property, in a recently released video.
In the video, the Republican congressman can be seen at an event where two apparent constituents and supporters of the Arizona lawmaker approach the man to begin discussing issues at the US southern border.
“I’m actually a huge fan of everything you’ve done for election integrity and everything,” the man, who is off camera and can’t be identified, begins by telling Mr Gosar, referring back to the lawmaker’s history of supporting Donald Trump’s claims that the 2020 election was stolen.
The man then turns his focus to the southern border, where he claims he and his family have a ranch that is frequently trespassed by immigrants making their way up from Mexico – or, as he refers to them, “illegals”.
“We’ve shot at them and you know, our Second Amendments rights to stand our ground. I’m worried that the Democrats are gonna send me to jail,” the man alleges, while a seeming to sympathise Mr Gosar nods along while “mhm”-ing to the man’s story.
Mr Gosar then interjects, “They have more rights than we do.”
“Yeah, it’s like I can’t shoot them when, you know, as they cross the border and stuff,” the man continues as Mr Gosar continues to nod.
“I mean, I think I might’ve hit someone. I might’ve hit someone and I’m like, I was distressed about it for a week,” the man says before thanking the congressman for his work.
As the two men shake hands, Mr Gosar then says: “Say a prayer because this country needs you.
“There’s a bunch of people that are ready to go into action.”
The Independent has contacted representatives for Mr Gosar to comment on the contents of the video but has yet to receive a response.
Lauren Windsor, a liberal activist, is the online figure who shared the original video.
The self-described advocacy journalist uploaded the encounter onto her YouTube show, The Undercurrent, and simultaneously shared the since-viral clip on her personal Twitter account, where she acknowledged that the filming had been done under a “ruse” to get a camera-worthy reaction from the congressman.
“In a ruse to expose tolerance for violence against immigrants, we told GOP Rep Paul Gosar that we’ve been shooting ‘illegals’ on our ranch in Southern Arizona,” said the liberal activist in the caption sharing the video. “Said Gosar: ‘Say a prayer because this country needs you. There’s a bunch of people that are ready to go into action.’"
This isn’t the first time that Ms Windsor has made headlines for capturing conservative commentators or politicians making incendiary remarks that, she admits, are usually unearthed from her disarming nature.
In a separate viral hit, Ms Windsor managed to get Glenn Youngkin, then a Republican nominee for governor of Virginia, to reveal that he couldn’t press his anti-abortion agenda out of fear of alienating independent voters. for fear of losing independent voters.
Rep Jim Jordan of Ohio also fell prey to her undercover camera, when he confided in her that Donald Trump would soon announce he was running again for president in 2024. The Republican congressman’s spokesperson at the time denied that he made that statement, telling Politico: “Not true. Mr. Jordan did not say this.”
Mr Gosar, who is running unopposed in Arizona’s 9th Congressional District, has been using most of the lead-up to the midterms to stump for fellow election-denying candidates on the ballot in his state, including Ms Lake and Rep Andy Biggs, who is running for reelection in Arizona’s 5th Congressional District.
