With Anthony Weiner’s stock as a potential New York City mayoral candidate plummets rapidly, he’s now got to contend with a video showing him in a shouting match with a Jewish voter. The scandal-prone political hopeful got into a heated war of words Wednesday with a man who lashed out at him for being “married to an Arab,” in addition to chastising the former congressman about his well-documented sexting drama. The incident began inside a bakery in Brooklyn’s Borough Park neighborhood, where the man yelled out to Weiner, who had just bought chocolate-dipped honey cookies and an iced coffee, “You’re a real scumbag.” Weiner, quick to offer a retort, then said to no one in particular, “Very nice, that’s a charming guy right there.” It is after that that the man, later identified as real estate manager Saul Kessler, responded: “Married to an Arab.” The comment is a direct inference to Weiner’s wife, Huma Abedin, who works for Hillary Clinton. Abedin’s late father was an Islamic scholar from India and her mother, a sociologist, is from Pakistan. Weiner is Jewish, as were most of those inside the Brooklyn bakery. You can watch the exchange below: //player.vimeo.com/video/73808311 Untitled from Anthony Weiner on Vimeo.
“What rabbi taught you that you’re my judge,” Weiner can be seen saying on the video captured by Jacob Kornbluh, a blogger who posted the exchange on NYCelects.com. The Democratic mayoral candidate responded with, “Very nice, in front of children… That is charming.” But that wasn’t enough to stop Kessler from talking, even as Weiner was leaving the bakery, saying, “You are disgusting, disgusting.” Weiner, who resigned from Congress in 2011, was known in Washington for his sometimes fiery rhetoric on the House floor and in cable TV appearances. He posted an extended version (which you can see above) of the exchange through his campaign website. Weiner has made it a note to say that his bid for New York City mayor is about the future, not about his scandalous past. The city, on the other hand, has felt different about Anthony Weiner, as he has clocked in 7% support in the Democratic primary for mayor, according to the latest Quinnipiac Poll, and is far behind frontrunner Bill de Blasio, the city’s public advocate, who has 43%. Do you think that Anthony Weiner was right or wrong to defend himself and his wife against public critique? Share your thoughts in the comments section below. Props: Complex