WASHINGTON — A candidate from Illinois for the U.S. House of Representatives and former member of the Nationalist Socialist Party is arguing that the Holocaust never happened. 

In an interview Wednesday with a local news site, the Oak Lawn Patch, Arthur Jones stated that the Holocaust “is nothing more than an international extortion racket by the Jews.” 

“It’s the blackest lie in history. Millions of dollars are being made by Jews telling this tale of woe and misfortune in books, movies, plays and TV,” Jones told the Oak Lawn Patch.  “The more survivors, the more lies that are told.” 

In addition to his past party affiliation, Jones regularly organizes family-friendly neo-Nazi events scheduled to coincide with Adolf Hitler’s birthday.

Jones, a 64-year-old insurance salesman and Vietnam War veteran, is seeking the Republican nomination to face incumbent Rep. Daniel Lipinski (D-Ill.) in Illinois’ Third Congressional District, which encompasses the southern suburbs of Chicago. The primary is set for March 20.

Jones indicated that he is mounting his third run for Congress due to Lipinski’s connections to AIPAC.