Bill de Blasio’s Republican opponent in the the upcoming New York City mayor race says he lacks the passion of an Italian and should not never have changed his named from Warren Wilhelm.
Republican mayoral candidate Nicole Malliotakis was having some fun at de Blasio’s expense Thursday when she said, “I really think Bill de Blasio should go back to using his birth name of Warren Wilhelm because he obviously doesn’t have the heart and soul of an Italian.”
The New York Post reports that Mailliotakis made the remarks about the half-Italian de Blasio because the New York City mayor seems to have joined the monument lynch-mob and won’t support the continued display of a statue of Christopher Columbus.
On Thursday she tweeted: “Where does de Blasio stand on Columbus statue? Every other mayoral candidate has said. After 3 weeks, he still can’t answer simple question.”
The Columbus statue has become ground zero in the local fight over the legitimacy of historic monuments honoring personalities who don’t always meet current standards of political correctness.
Malliotakis, who is of Greek and Cuban descent, has been unequivocal in her contention that the statue must stay in place.
The de Blasio campaign was quick to condemn the cultural critique from Mailliotakis, calling it “vile.”
“This is what Trump-style campaigning looks like in New York City,” said de Blassio’s campaign communication director Monica Klein. “We are disappointed, but sadly not surprised.”
