Dupage Policy Journal

The Illinois Republican Party recently condemned U.S. House Democratic candidate Sean Casten’s comparison of President Trump to Osama Bin Laden, suggesting his statement might be grounds for dismissal.

“Democrat Sean Casten's recent comparison of President Donald Trump to Osama Bin Laden is disrespectful, repugnant and disqualifying," Illinois Republican Party Executive Director Travis Sterling said. "In this era of deep partisanship, this type of harmful rhetoric shows he is out of touch with the communities of (the) Sixth Congressional District."

The Capitol Fax website reported that an audio recording of Casten in a public forum with voters had surfaced via The Washington Free Beacon.

Rep. Peter Roskam | https://roskam.house.gov/

“In many ways — and I don’t mean to sound overly, I don’t know, hyperbolic on this — Trump and Osama Bin Laden have a tremendous amount in common,” Casten was quoted on CapitolFax.com.

Casten made the remarks answering a voter’s question about gun control. The candidate compared gun-rights supporters to followers of Al Qaeda, Capitol Fax states.

Once the audio clip became public, Capitol Fax reached out to Casten's campaign for a comment.

“Sean’s words were poorly chosen, and he regrets them,” Casten's campaign told Capitol Fax. “Even prior to this election, Donald Trump’s politics of disparagement and division have been exacerbating the bonds that hold our diverse nation together. And Sean believes that Donald Trump has gone out of his way to divide Americans for his own personal gain rather than bringing us together to solve issues like gun violence.”

Casten has operated businesses that “lowered energy costs and reduced pollution by increasing overall energy efficiency,” his campaign website states.

Casten is running against incumbent Rep. Peter Roskam (R-Illinois) in November’s general election.

The 6th Congressional District includes Cook, DuPage, Kane, Lake and McHenry counties.