A Michigan state Representative was stripped of his committee assignments as well as his staff after he shared a racist post on Twitter last week.
Republican Josh Schriver, who is serving in his first term representing parts of Oakland County in the Metro Detroit area, retweeted a post from noted alt-right dirtbag Jack Posobiec promoting the “great replacement” a racist conspiracy theory that has led to white supremacist and antisemitic violence in the United States and around the World.
Monday, Michigan House Speaker Joe Tate disciplined Schriver by not only removing him from committees and liquidating his staff but also stripping him of his budget further limiting Schriver’s abilities within Michigan’s government. Schriver, however, will still be able to place votes on the state’s House floor.
“Rep. Schriver has a history of promoting debunked theories and dangerous rhetoric that jeopardizes the safety of Michigan residents and contributes to a hostile and uncomfortable environment for others,” Tate said in a statement Monday. “The House of Representatives is the people’s house, and all Michiganders should look upon this body and take pride in how we conduct ourselves. It is also a workplace, and I have a responsibility to make sure the employees of the House feel safe and secure.”
Detroit News
Last week, our affiliates over at The Majors Sports Detroit reported on Schriver’s racist Posobiec retweet and his more recent history of inflammatory comments and actions as a state official towards marginalized communities. There was added blowback to Schriver’s actions considering his wife, Gabby Schriver, is a goalkeeper for Detroit City FC, a massively popular lower-league soccer club with a large vocal fanbase.
However, the racist controversies surrounding Josh Schriver don’t stop here.
In November of last year, the website Right Wing Watch (RWW) ran a story on Schriver highlighting a possible connection to Nick Fuentes, a Christofascist white nationalist who is a prominent figure in the America First movement. RWW cites an appearance Schriver made on a Detroit Fox affiliate where he put up a No. 1 finger gesture that has become popular with Fuentes’ followers.
RWW also brought to light some hashtags Schriver has used in the past including #ChristIsKing and #AmericaFirst which have been popular among Fuentes’ followers. Additionally, there was some added suspicion when Schriver posted about “Autumn” being his favorite season which could’ve been a reference to a now-banned Twitter account “Autumn Groyper” which was believed to have been run by Fuentes himself.
Perhaps the most damning piece of evidence though concerning Schriver having a possible connection with a noted white nationalist in Nick Fuentes is a screenshot that seemed to show conversations between Schriver and Paul Escandon, a streamer on Fuentes’ platform and a co-host of the CancelProof show. Escandon also reportedly produced a “glowing” documentary in 2022 about Fuentes called “The Most Canceled Man In America” according to RWW.
Fuentes has also made claims in the past about having many supporters working in influential political positions across the United States. Either way, speculation will continue when it comes to Schriver and a possible connection to Fuentes. What really isn’t speculatory, however, is Schriver’s popularity among a Republican Party that has become even more nationalistic. In November of 2022, Schriver was elected to the Michigan State House with an overwhelming 65% of the vote. Given that inflammatory, ultra-right, views have been granted a sick legitimacy with the rise of Donald Trump, it’s hard to see Schriver losing any popularity among a white conservative base in that part of Metro Detroit.
