What a turkey.
Francesca Hong, a Democrat aligned with socialist principles and currently vying for the position of Wisconsin governor, once stirred controversy by denouncing Thanksgiving as a celebration of colonialism. Now, in a surprising twist, she claims it’s actually her favorite holiday.
In a recent interview on Politico’s Playbook podcast, the candidate sought to retract her November 2021 comments, where she had called for Thanksgiving to be canceled—a post she has since deleted.
“Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday,” Hong declared, light-heartedly adding, “I don’t want to cancel it; I genuinely love it.”
In a conversation with host Irie Senter, she confessed that Thanksgiving holds a special place in her family as a “big event,” although she also described herself as “kind of a curmudgeon when it comes to holidays overall.”
During the height of the Covid pandemic in November 2021, Hong issued a blistering public-service announcement on her X account to “cancel Thanksgiving” — and raged that it “should have been done in 1621.”
“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 wrote in her since-deleted post, referring to the spread of smallpox that killed many indigenous Americans.
The socialist darling’s Thanksgiving hatred is not an anomaly though, as she has gotten worked up about at least seven US holidays in social media posts — including Valentine’s Day, the Fourth of July, Christmas, Halloween and Mother’s and Father’s days.
Her bizarre backtrack comes after her interview on CNN Monday, where she issued a 46-second word salad response when asked by host Kaitlan Collins if she still believes Thanksgiving should be canceled.
Despite being asked point-blank, Hong wasn’t able to give a “yes” or “no” answer.
“I’m a chef, and one of the first meals that I made that was for the community when I was 16 was a Thanksgiving meal.,” she waffled to Collins.
“I always think my hospitality background and owning a restaurant for 7-8 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. So I think there I wanted to make sure people understood there are multiple views, but views can evolve.”
“And the position 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 added before Collins ended the interview.