Many City Council Members require strong Republican challengers. District 48 in Brooklyn, faithfully represented by Inna Vernikov, is not one of these seats. Shockingly, in a room stacked with Ari Kagan’s cronies, members of the so-called “Donald J. Trump Kings County Republican Club” (KCRC) voted to endorse him in the June 24 primary elections. Kagan spent years as a propagandist for the Soviet Army, before becoming a loyal Democrat. He was a Democrat District Leader for ten years and then a Democrat for two more on the City Council, as recently as 2022. Suddenly, he became a “conservative.” Does this sound like a candidate that Republicans should endorse?
Inna Vernikov is an experienced Republican who turned District 48 red for the first time in 100 years. Unlike Ari Kagan, she has an established track record of improving the lives of New Yorkers with conservative policies. When Kagan joined forces with the vaccine tyrants to fire hardworking New Yorkers from their jobs, Inna Vernikov led a rally outside Gracie Mansion to save them. When Chuck Schumer called for a path to citizenship for every illegal immigrant in the United States – including terrorists and gangsters – Kagan was right behind him, applauding vociferously. Inna Vernikov, in contrast, repeatedly made national headlines for opposing the illegal migrant invasion.
One might think that a Republican club that named itself after our beloved President would support the candidate that the President himself supports. At our 111th Annual Gala in 2023, the President praised Inna Vernikov for her work and invited her on stage to celebrate with him. Has Ari Kagan – a Democrat until 2022, and before that a Soviet Communist – ever voted for President Trump? The answer is obvious.
As far back as 2017, Kagan had harsh words for President Trump: “He’s a little bit nuts,” Kagan remarked. “He can’t take criticism. He’s like Putin that way. It’s not the American way.” In 2018, Kagan echoed radical left-wing “RussiaGate” talking points and added that “every American patriot should be concerned” about the President’s actions. The Chair of the Kings County Democratic Committee once said that “the vast majority of the members of the Brooklyn Democratic Party are backing Ari Kagan.” Today, it is shocking to see the KCRC issue a near-identical endorsement for the man who condemned their namesake.
The New York Young Republican Club calls for the KCRC to immediately rescind its endorsement of Ari Kagan and throw its weight behind Councilwoman Vernikov, the successful incumbent who shares President Donald J. Trump’s vision and support. It is dishonest for a club to adopt the President’s name and then support candidates that contrast sharply with his priorities. If it fails to correct itself, the KCRC ought to remove the President’s name from its title.
Politics separates serious players from hobbyists. By endorsing Ari Kagan, the KCRC did unnecessary damage to the New York City Republican Party and clashed with the President’s agenda. Thankfully, there is still time for them to rectify this horrendous mistake before time runs out.