Somehow, the topic of notorious sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein has been catapulted into the 27th Congressional District contest between Republican incumbent Chris Jacobs and Democrat Nate McMurray.
It all started Thursday morning when McMurray tweeted a years-old photo of President Trump sitting with Ghislaine Maxwell, the longtime associate of Epstein, who was accused of sexually abusing underage girls before committing suicide last year in a New York City jail.
"President Trump has done nothing to stop child trafficking," McMurray wrote, before adding without any evidence, "he is probably a child trafficker."
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It didn't take long for reaction to come from New York State Republican Headquarters in Albany. The party issued a statement accusing McMurray of "unfounded attacks."
"These outlandish and totally unhinged attacks make it clear that he is unfit for public office,” spokeswoman Jessica Proud said of McMurray. “With these comments, he is proving that he does not possess the mental fitness to represent taxpayers. He needs to immediately retract this slanderous statement and apologize."
But late Thursday afternoon, McMurray refused to budge. He noted that the president had said he "wished her well" after Maxwell was charged with aiding Epstein in recruiting young girls for sex. She has denied the charges.
"He said that a woman being held for child trafficking is someone he likes and feels sorry for," McMurray said. "Trump literally had these people as part of his inner circle while president of the United States.
"All the president needs to do is renounce these people," he added. "He hasn't."
McMurray said the New York GOP should condemn Trump for his expression of sympathy for Maxwell, the onetime girlfriend of Epstein.
