Congressional candidates pandering to the fringe

In San Diego’s East County, Republican and Democratic congressional candidates court a group that peddles in conspiracy theories, racist talk and images of violence.

In Georgia, Republican U.S. Senate candidates vie for the endorsement of a congressional hopeful known for spreading baseless conspiracy theories from the mysterious group Qanon.

In the White House, the president of the United States also advances the fantastical Qanon tales and encourages anti-government extremists at protests.

It boggles the mind how strange and potentially dangerous this year has become.

In 2020, fringe groups have entered mainstream politics and, given that, perhaps it shouldn’t be surprising that people running for office — mostly Republicans — are currying their favor.

In the 50th Congressional District, Democrat Ammar Campa-najjar and Republican Darrell Issa participated in separate taped interviews with the leader of Defend East County, a Facebook group that was organized after two banks were burned to the ground and businesses were looted in La Mesa following a May protest.

The group’s online page says members want to protect their cities, but “it’s also a place where conspiracy theories, racist banter and calls for violence persist,” according to an indepth look at Defend East County by Andrew Dyer of The San Diego Union-tribune.

Facebook conversations in Defend East County sometimes become heated and, despite stated rules against it, racist. Videos of counterprotesters in other cities punching and kicking Black Lives Matter protesters received hundreds of “likes” on the Defend East County page, as did a video of a car running over protesters.

In his Q&A with the group’s founder, Justin Haskins, Campa-najjar criticized the Green New Deal environmental-economic plan and Medicare for All, the latter of which he once backed.

He said he was open to the government investigating former President