In a since-deleted tweet, Representative Sonya Jaquez Lewis slandered Senator Bernie Sanders by falsely claiming that Senator Sanders had suffered a stroke using a hand-selected screenshot of Sanders making what appears to be a grimace.

Rep. Jaquez Lewis tweeted the following conspiracy theory, “So, I’m not an MD but have worked with stroke victims for many years, Bernie has had a stroke or something. Look at the left side of his face. Hope he is okay.”

After 9News reporter, Kyle Clark, reported on the tweet, Rep. Jaquez Lewis deleted the tweet from her official representative Twitter account page and gave the following statement, “I’m tired of the bullying and harassment of women by Bernie Bros. But I did take it down and regret it.”

For someone who seems tired of the bullying and harassment, it may behoove Rep. Jaquez Lewis to look in the mirror to determine who started the bullying, harassment, and conspiracy theory pushing in the first place.

When Rep. Jaquez Lewis was a delegate for Hillary Clinton in 2016, she told the Times Call that she hopes to reach out to Bernie supporters, “I can sympathize with the Bernie supporters this year. I’ve always considered myself to be a progressive, too.”

The Times Call also reported, “But Lewis said she hoped she’ll be able to ‘help bring the Sanders people on board’ once the convention is over and the national presidential campaign contest is underway.”

Rep. Jaquez Lewis sure has a funny way of bringing people over to her side.

For a county that voted overwhelmingly for Sanders, I fail to understand why one of its state representatives would so actively degrade and slander the most popular presidential candidate in the county. Rep. Jaquez Lewis certainly has her right to free speech, but time-and-time again, she chooses poor taste and slander over civility, reason, and decency.

While I disagree with much of Sanders’ policy platform, I find the egregious and malicious personality attacks launched at Sanders to be deeply damaging to America’s democracy, common decency, and civil discourse.

It’s clear to me that Rep. Jaquez Lewis has little interest in mending America’s and Colorado’s political divide. Rather, she seems firm in her resolve to make that divide even wider, and completely mock and degrade the interests and wishes of her constituents.

Despite my policy disagreements with Sanders, if elected to be your next District 17 State Senator, I promise to never denegrade my constituents. Rather, I’ll engage in positive, civil discourse over critical issues and find common resolve, and even common ground. We need to focus on mental health. We need to focus on teacher pay and our students. We need to focus on our energy use and our environment. And most importantly, we need to focus on ourselves and how to help each other during an incredibly difficult year.

If or when elected, I promise to never delete my social media posts because it’s simply unethical. Any social media post published by an elected official should be considered a part of the public record. It also provides constituents full transparency on their elected officials’ stances and thoughts. This goes for elected officials of all parties, whether it’s President Trump or Rep. Jaquez Lewis.

I believe this is a fair criticism of the SD17 Democratic candidate. Rep. Jaquez Lewis is an elected official and therefore held to a higher standard. We elected her to not only represent everybody in our district but to also be intellectually honest and rational. I take serious issue with anybody who does armchair medical diagnoses without a medical degree. I take serious issue someone contriving a conspiracy theory and use it to slander and demonize someone simply because they don’t agree with them.

In this election, character and decency are on the ballot. It’s clear to me that Rep. Sonya Jaquez Lewis has neither.

Character and decency matter. Let’s vote like it does.

See video: “Colorado Democrat deletes tweet with conspiracy theory about Bernie Sanders,” Kyle Clark, 9News