A Democratic candidate for district attorney in Texas is a self-described conservative who believes vaccination causes autism, and that Islam is "basically a political system wrapped in a religion."
Bexar County district attorney Nico LaHood is currently running for re-election. Although he's registered as a Democrat, LaHood described himself as a "conservative guy" on a conservative talk radio show last year, according to the San Antonio Express-News.
Around that same time, LaHood told radio host Joe "Pags" Pagliarulo that "Islam is basically a political system wrapped in a religion."
He added that he has "some very, very — and I want to emphasize this — very good friends that wear the label of a Muslim, but they don't follow the tenets or the principle of Islam, more importantly Sharia Law, because they've been Americanized," and that "terrorists, are truly, militantly following what the text tells them to do."
LaHood, whose son has autism, also believes that vaccines "can and do cause autism," as he said in a promotional video for the anti-vaccination movie "Vaxxed."
The Daily Beast attempted to contact LaHood's campaign to ask why the conservative attorney registered as a Democrat, which he did before his initial election in 2014, when he beat Republican incumbent Susan Reed. LaHood's campaign did not respond to the request.
His opponent, Joe Gonzales, is an attorney who was friends with LaHood until they opposed each other in a court case. While in a private meeting with the judge in the case, Gonzales claims that LaHood threatened to "destroy" and "shut down" his legal practice, which LaHood denied but the judge confirms, according to The San Antonio Current.
Earlier this month, LaHood unleashed an attack ad against Gonzales, ripping him for representing sex offenders.
Prior to his election as district attorney, LaHood also represented sex offenders, and his law firm even put out an ad offering "smart legal advice and dedicated representation to clients who have been charged with any type of sexual offense," according to the Express-News.
© 2023 Newsmax. All rights reserved.