Republican congressional candidate Brandon Herrera implied COVID-19 “wasn’t bad enough” because not enough obese people died. The remarks were made during Herrera’s appearance on Elijah Schaffer’s Slightly Offensive on July 31, 2022, approximately a year before his first congressional run.

The conversation began with the participants discussing diversity on romance and dating shows and whether contestants’ racial preferences affected which people were eliminated before turning toward obesity. After the host said white men prefer to date white women over Black women, Herrera said, “I wonder if they’re solving for all variables here. Because there’s also like an obesity epidemic in the female Black community. So it’s like, okay, well, maybe …did you show them like a 100 random Black women and they just maybe don’t like obese people?”

After another participant, TimCast producer Lisa Jackson, then explained she hates obese people alleging she was being bullied by them when she was younger because she was skinny. Herrera then joked that perhaps they “hated you because there wasn’t enough of you to eat.”

Jackson then repeated that she hated “fat people” and “especially fat women” and called them “the most undisciplined, freaking disgusting people ever,” telling them to “stop putting food in your mouth.” Herrera appeared amused during the unhinged rant.

Host Elijah Shaffer then said, “Brandon’s like, shit, this is not helping my life.” However, Herrera then affirmed the sentiment: “No, no, I’m here for it, dude. I’m of the opinion COVID wasn’t bad enough because if you had something that just unfairly targeted fucking fat people, I’m here for it,” Herrera said. He then added, “I would have worn my mask nowhere on purpose.”

Herrera is the Republican candidate in Texas’ 23rd Congressional District, where he is running against Democratic nominee Katy Padilla Stout.