A Pennsylvania Democrat is facing charges that he used questionable language about minorities online about a decade ago, according to multiple reports.
Democratic Sen. Jimmy Dillon, 45, of Philadelphia, allegedly wrote offensive tweets about black, gay and Asian people between 2011 and 2015 under the handle “@Hoops24_7,” according to the Delaware Valley (DV) Journal. Reported Tuesday. Dillon runs a basketball academy for kids called Hoops 24-7 Basketball Academy, which has led some to accuse him of being behind the handle @Hoops24_7.
He denied making the comments on Tuesday, saying, “I'm not a big fan of social media. If a basketball player who works for Hoops 24-7 made a post like this over 10 years ago, it's the first I've heard of it and it doesn't reflect my values.” According to ABC27 News.
“@A2daO: This is [n-word] “He's truly a 7'2 guard,” one tweet from the handle read in January 2013. “He plays like he's on tour with And1…unguardable.”
“@JonDaBB hosted two parties. [n-word] Another tweet from Nov. 24, 2012, read, “Boarding facility…Big Hoops 365 staff meeting Friday night…”
In two of the now-deleted tweets, the N-word was not removed, according to screenshots shared by DV Journal.
According to the outlet, a now-deleted tweet from Nov. 14, 2011 read, “@Jessejane you know who's home…Jesse @Jon daBB. Tell him to stop being gay and come home from work and party with us.”
The two tweets referring to Asian people were still available online late Tuesday night but now appear to have been deleted.
“Guam guys had no idea one of the Chinese guy's dads was Mr. Miazzi… #waxonwaxoff,” reads one comment posted on Aug. 18, 2011.
“I know it's Japan, but there's no way a goalie who swims back from Canada wouldn't be tortured like the Chinese. #GoUSA,” said another post from Philadelphia on July 5, 2015. (RELATED: Joe Scarborough deletes Trump 'bloody' post after Elon Musk responds)
Cody Harbaugh, executive director of the Pennsylvania State Senate Republican Campaign Committee (PASRCC), called the tweets “offensive slurs and statements” and “defamatory comments.” press release“Disturbing revelation that Jimmy Dillon has used the N-word in the past.”
“A 30-year-old adult was casually using the N-word on social media and making offensive jokes,” Harbaugh said. “His behavior is disqualifying, period.”
Dillon is running against Republican Joe Picozzi, 28, of Somerton, in his first election for state Senate. Dillon reportedly plans to run for state Senate in 2022 through a special election to fill a vacant Democratic seat.
Dillon also has an outstanding warrant out of New Jersey for failing to pay traffic fines and failing to appear in court, DV Journal reported separately. Reported.
The Daily Caller reached out to Sen. Jimmy Dillon's office but did not hear back by press time.
