A Wisconsin congressional candidate has been arrested on hate crime charges after he went on a vulgar caught-on-camera rant against an Israeli dad with his young son in the car — after he was triggered by an anti-Hamas bumper sticker.
Matthew Arndt, 54, allegedly cut off the 41-year-old father on a road in the Milwaukee suburb of Mequon Thursday morning, flipping him the bird and cursing at him before pulling into a gas station, where the dad followed him and began filming the explosive encounter.
“Do you want to tell me something?” the father asked.
“Yeah, you’re a f–king piece of s–t! You’re a f–king traitor!” Arndt erupted, pointing an accusatory finger at the stunned motorist.
“Why do you say this?” the dad asked.
“You’re a f–king Israel f–king traitor! F–k you! F–k Israel! Go f–k yourself!” Arndt raged.
By Thursday evening, Arndt had been arrested on a disorderly conduct charge with a hate crime enhancer, police said.
During the confrontation, Arndt dared the father to share the footage.
“You know what? Go post it on social media. I’m running for Congress in the 6th District, and f–k Israel! Go f–k yourself!” he shouted.
“Really? You’re running for Congress?” the incredulous dad asked.
“F–k the Israel lobby! F–k the neocons!” Arndt fired back.
Asked his name, the candidate declared, “Free Palestine! Matthew Arndt.”
“You’re a great guy. I’m definitely going to vote for you,” the father shot back sarcastically.
The Israeli immigrant, who has lived in the US for about 12 years, told The Post the bizarre confrontation began while he was driving his young son to school.
“I was driving my son to school this morning. Someone was driving behind me. I have an Israeli flag sticker with ‘F–k Hamas,’ which, as far as I understand, is a terror organization that was declared so by the US,” he said.
“And I guess that really pissed off the guy behind me, and when he got the chance, he just got next to me and opened the window and started cursing and giving me the finger, almost trying to push me off the lane.”
The father said he tried to keep his distance from the aggressive driver, particularly because his little boy was in the back seat.
“I had my son in the back seat and tried to keep my distance from him, drove behind him, took a picture of his license plate, and when he pulled into a gas station I pulled in as well,” he recalled.
“I have no idea why I did this, but I pulled in as well with my camera on and was like, ‘Hey, what’s going on?’ and the rest of it is in the video.”
The father said he had no idea who Arndt was until the candidate volunteered his name and political ambitions.
“The first thought that comes to mind is, even if I disagree with someone, I would never want someone that acts like this to run for congress,” he said.
“Even if he and I don’t hold the same opinion, that’s fine, but that was violent. That was very aggressive and violent, and obviously having my son in the back seat, it was definitely uncomfortable for him,” he said.
“He was getting nervous in the back seat.”
The father insisted his bumper sticker was directed solely at Hamas, not Palestinians.
“It doesn’t go against the Palestinians. I have nothing against the Palestinians. I definitely have an issue with an organization that wants the Jews dead,” he said.
Arndt, a certified public accountant and investment adviser, is running for Wisconsin’s 6th Congressional District on a Green Party platform, which includes breaking up monopolies, providing Medicare for All and severing US ties with Israel.
His campaign website, titled “End the Cartel,” calls for an overhaul of the political establishment and vows to take on powerful interests in Washington.
“I’m not here to ‘restore norms’ or ‘reach across the aisle’ or have ‘the courage to compromise’ just to preserve a corrupt system,” Arndt declares on the site.
The website also touts religious tolerance, declaring that America belongs to people of all faiths, including Jews and Muslims.
“America is for all of us—or it is not America at all. And any politics that teaches us to hate each other is not patriotism. It is poison,” the site proclaims.
However, the Green Party has taken a major anti-Israel stand across the world. The party in the UK voted to adopt a measure the treats Zionism — support for the Jewish state of Israel — the same as bigotry, including racism.
Arndt did not respond to a request for comment.
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