Josh Marshall says Ossoff's Third Reich line stated facts in the public record
Josh MarshallFounder of Talking Points Memo, writing on its Editors' Blog
Responding to David Brooks, Josh Marshall wrote that Ossoff did not call Collins a Nazi and that his debate remark was an aggressive statement of facts in the public record, citing repeated reports of people in Collins's campaign, political operation or family with far-right or neo-Nazi connections.
Responding to
Mike Collins staffed his congressional office with people who hold neo-Nazi or white nationalist views.
“Ossoff didn’t call Mike Collins a Nazi. ... This isn’t some random swipe. It’s been one of the biggest stories of the campaign season that week after week reporters keep finding members of Collins campaign, political operation or family who are associated with far-right or neo-Nazi individuals and organizations or who distribute anti-Semitic propaganda. This is merely an aggressive statement of facts that are unambiguously in the public record.”
Analysis
Where this statement fits
Did Mike Collins hire aides with white nationalist ties, as Jon Ossoff claimed?
At the October 8, 2026 Georgia Senate debate, Sen. Jon Ossoff told Rep. Mike Collins he had hired "half the Third Reich" to staff his congressional office and had promoted neo-Nazi content online. The charge followed months of reporting about a former Collins chief of staff, a former intern, Collins's son-in-law and two campaign organizers. Collins says he condemns racism and antisemitism and fired people when problems arose. Whether those aides and associations match Ossoff's description is disputed.
Source and context
Analysis
About this source
Editors' Blog post in which Talking Points Memo founder Josh Marshall responds to David Brooks's criticism of Ossoff's debate remark.
Before the quotation
Marshall quoted David Brooks's October 9 PBS News Hour advice that Ossoff stop calling political opponents Nazis, and wrote that the remark had several problems, including false equivalence.
After the quotation
Marshall then turned to what he called elite gatekeeping and how Democrats operate in public debate, which he said was the larger subject of the post.
How this statement is classified
The label describes this statement's response within the context above.
Why this label?
The reference point is Collins's staffing and associations as Ossoff characterized them. Marshall calls Ossoff's charge "an aggressive statement of facts" in the public record, saying the associations Ossoff described are real, so the statement condemns them.
- Recorded on
- Published here
- People and groups discussed
- David Brooks
More from this case
Read the full caseBrooks tells Ossoff to stop calling opponents Nazis but calls Collins's circle disturbing
“Jon Ossoff, my advice to him is, if you start calling your political opponents Nazis, maybe it's time to shut up. That's just not what we do here in this country. And the Bull Connor stuff -- and a lot of these candidates have real weaknesses. Like, Mike Collins, who's the Georgia Republican, I think what's accurate to say about him is, he has a disturbing number of young men on his -- around him who have ties to the alt-right and some of the vile antisemitic stuff online.”Read statement
Filipkowski calls Ossoff's line hyperbolic but says Collins hired the Third Reich's disciples
“While it was a bit hyperbolic for Ossoff to say that Mike Collins hired half the Third Reich to staff his office, it is accurate to say he hired their disciples.”Read statement
Collins calls Ossoff's attacks craziness and says that when he "had things happen," he fired people
“You know, Rick, that’s my family. That’s the craziness that Jon Ossoff has been spewing out there. I actually had a crazy person get put in jail this weekend, because he not only wanted to kill my son-in-law, but he wanted to kill me. And you’re exactly right. I’ve got a daughter and grandkids there, as well as my wife. I’ve condemned racism, anti-Semitism, hate. I don’t care where the source is. And I tell him that, too. It’s wrong. We have no place in this world for that. But I’ve never heard him say a word about his DSA pick up there, Abdul El Saeed, Hassan Piker. How about Reid Hoffman? None of those. He doesn’t denounce anybody or anything or condemn them, because he’s part of them. But yet he wants to take that and spew that on me. That’s not me. When I had things happen, I’m a businessman. I fired them. I got rid of them. Don’t need them.”Read statement
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The Dispute Index. "Josh Marshall says Ossoff's Third Reich line stated facts in the public record". First published: 2026-10-13. Last updated: 2026-10-13. https://disputeindex.com/events/5652-responding-to-david-brooks-josh-marshall-wrote-that