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Democratic socialist Wisconsin gubernatorial candidate Francesca Hong said that Thanksgiving was her “favorite holiday” on Wednesday and that she has no interest in canceling it despite her past controversial X posts.
“My favorite holiday is Thanksgiving,” Hong told Politico Playbook, which in an X post wrote that Hong was “joking.” “Yep, I don’t want to cancel it. I actually love it.”
Hong explained that the holiday was a “big event” for her family members and their in-laws.
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Wisconsin Gubernatorial candidate Francesca Hong faced backlash for several deleted X posts, including one calling to “cancel Thanksgiving.” (Joshua Lott/Getty Images)
“You know, I’m just… I’m going to be real,” Hong said. “I’m kind of a curmudgeon when it comes to holidays in general.”
Hong was responding to the backlash she faced for a now-deleted post, which was initially made on X in November 2020, after she appeared to draw comparisons between the deadly pandemic and the Thanksgiving holiday.
“Cancel Thanksgiving. Should have done this in 1621,” Hong wrote, according to Fox News Digital’s previous reporting.
“If it takes a worldwide pandemic for us to realize we should stop celebrating colonialism and the original superspreader event that killed indigenous folx [sic] and women, so be it,” she added, referring to the spread of smallpox that killed many Indigenous Americans.
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In a statement to Fox News Digital, Hong’s campaign previously said, “No, she does not want to ‘cancel’ Thanksgiving.” However, Hong hesitated to give the same answer when asked if she still believes Thanksgiving should be canceled on CNN Monday.
Francesca Hong initially hesitated to answer whether she still wants to cancel Thanksgiving during an interview on CNN. (Scott Bauer/AP Photo)
“I’m a chef, and one of the first meals that I made that was for the community when I was 16 [years old] was a Thanksgiving meal,” Hong said. “I always think my hospitality background in owning a restaurant for seven, eight years, that bringing folks around the table to share conversation and build community is always a good thing.”
“But Thanksgiving is also a time that’s incredibly painful for many people in our communities,” Hong continued. “And so I think there, I wanted to make sure that people understood that there are multiple views, but views can evolve.”
“And the position that I’m running for right now, and I think my background as a chef will actually help me become a better governor that’s able to bring more people to the table,” she concluded.
Fox News Digital reached out to Hong’s campaign for comment.
Republican Wisconsin gubernatorial candidate Tom Tiffany criticized Hong’s original posts on Fox News Tuesday, accusing her and other socialist candidates of wanting to “destroy” American culture.
Francesa Hong told Politico on Wednesday that she definitively did not want to cancel Thanksgiving. (Getty Images for WisDems)
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“Well, considering she also posted, ‘Please DON’T gather for the colonizer holiday,’ and just days ago called Thanksgiving ‘incredibly painful,’ it’s hard to believe she now claims it’s her favorite holiday. But this goes far beyond Thanksgiving. It’s part of the broader socialist message that seeks to tear down the traditions, institutions, and values that bring Americans together. Whether it’s Thanksgiving, Christmas, Culver’s, the police, or even Valentine’s Day, Francesca Hong has spent her entire political career criticizing the very fabric of Wisconsin and the traditions that bring our communities together,” Tiffany added in comments to Fox News Digital on Wednesday.
Fox News’ Julia Bonavita contributed to this report.