Republican Rep. Lee Zeldin couldn’t catch a break on the campaign trail Friday where he found himself in the crosshairs of a so-called Flat Earther less than a day after escaping an attack from a deranged Army vet.
“They are lying to us. So NASA uses CGI animation. Are you aware of this? So the blue marble that everyone thinks is Earth was made by a computer,” a man who identified himself as a U.S. Navy veteran told Zeldin at a news conference in Watertown, north of country
The congressman from Long Island soon put to rest the geographical facts first discovered by Copernicus during the Renaissance centuries ago.
“So, personally, I totally disagree. I think the Earth is round. And I’ve traveled around the Earth. I’ve seen it from the sky while you’re traveling on a flight overseas, the Earth is clearly round. I mean it’s 100% undisputed,” Zeldin responded alongside running mate Alison Esposito and former rival Andrew Giuliani.
The exchange in Watertown came less than a day after Zeldin was attacked by a knife-wielding man at a campaign event outside Rochester. Zeldin was unarmed by the alleged assailant, who attacked the candidate saying, “You’re done,” and was quickly subdued and arrested, but then just as quickly released, sparking outrage.
Zeldin is running against Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul, who condemned the attack shortly after it happened, in the November gubernatorial election.
Although not as serious as Thursday’s attack, a Flat Earther highlighted how unexpected events continue to confront Zeldin.
Zeldin looked surprised as he answered the flat earth question.
“This is the longest day of my life,” Zeldin spokeswoman Katie Vincentz tweeted Friday.
His answer to the question about the Earth being supposedly flat is in line with the unanimous view of scientists, who have shown that the Earth is a sphere-like astronomical body that revolves around a star called the Sun once l ‘year.
“It’s 100 percent indisputable,” Zeldin, an Army veteran, said of the round Earth.
He then thanked the unidentified man for his service before moving on to another question from a reporter.
Celebrities such as basketball star Shaquille O’Neill have caused controversy by claiming that the Earth is flat, a belief that has spread at an increasing rate in recent years across the modern world despite evidence to the contrary.
Beliefs that the Earth is flat have grown in recent years. Betmann Archive
“This isn’t even a conspiracy theory. The Earth is flat,” Nets star Kyrie Irving said in 2017 while still playing for the Cavaliers.
Irving, whose vaccination beliefs have also drawn criticism, later blamed his mistaken claim on the YouTube “rabbit,” where videos making pseudoscientific claims about Earth have proliferated.
A Flat Earther’s appearance on the governor’s campaign trail a day after the Zeldin attack had some social media users wondering Friday what could be months away from the Nov. 8 vote.
“This election season, man,” Newsday Editorial Board member Mark Chiusano tweeted.