The final debate before Georgia’s Nov. 3 U.S. Senate election featured a sharp exchange between Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff and Republican challenger Rep. Mike Collins over alleged extremist material, campaign donations and threats against Collins’ family. The Atlanta Press Club hosted the debate Tuesday night, with Georgia Public Broadcasting airing it, according to the supplied report.
Ossoff challenged Collins over reporting about Collins’ son-in-law, David Alan Scheer II. The report says a CNN investigation examined imagery and online comments attributed to Scheer, including Nazi-related material and antisemitic conspiracy claims. Ossoff asked Collins to prevent further production of what he called “neo-Nazi propaganda” from Collins’ home during the remaining weeks of the campaign.
Collins rejected the line of attack and accused Ossoff’s rhetoric of fueling danger to his family. He said he and Scheer had received threats, and asserted that a person was in jail because of Ossoff’s rhetoric. The source does not provide details independently establishing a connection between Ossoff’s statements and the alleged threats. Collins said he condemned hate speech and antisemitism and had dismissed staff members when controversies arose.
Collins also challenged Ossoff over donations from Reid Hoffman, the LinkedIn co-founder and Democratic donor. According to campaign finance information cited in the report, Hoffman gave $7,000 directly to Ossoff’s campaign and $1 million to a political action committee supporting him. Collins urged Ossoff to denounce Hoffman and return the money, invoking Hoffman’s past association with Jeffrey Epstein, who was convicted of sex offenses.
The report says Hoffman acknowledged meeting Epstein after Epstein’s 2008 conviction and visiting his private island. It also says Hoffman apologized for the association, which he attributed to fundraising connected with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Hoffman has not been accused of wrongdoing related to Epstein’s crimes, the report states.
Collins referred during the debate to a reported 2014 delivery of ice cream to Epstein, describing a message as saying it was “for the girls.” The source attributes the account to prior Wall Street Journal reporting. The debate report does not provide additional documentation of that delivery beyond the description of the earlier coverage.
Ossoff rejected the comparison between Hoffman and the allegations involving Collins’ household. He argued that the situation would be different if a donor were living in his home, and returned to asking Collins to commit to stopping the production of extremist material there.
The candidates also disputed each other’s associations with other political figures. Collins criticized Ossoff’s support for Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed and cited comments by left-wing streamer Hasan Piker, including a remark Collins characterized as saying the United States deserved the Sept. 11 attacks. Ossoff had previously condemned Piker’s rhetoric, according to a statement from an Ossoff spokesperson to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution quoted in the source. The spokesperson said Ossoff rejected rhetoric suggesting political advocacy justified violence against Jewish Americans or any other community.
The debate was the candidates’ second and final one before the general election. The supplied report presents competing accusations from the candidates; it does not establish that Ossoff caused threats, or independently resolve the claims concerning the alleged extremist material.
