The Jewish attorney that Roy Moore's wife touted employing in an attempt to fight off claims of anti-semitism is actually a friend of Senator-elect Doug Jones, who defeated Moore last month.
Richard Jaffe is an Alabama defense attorney hired by the Moores to defend their son, Caleb Moore, against drug charges in 2016.
Doug Jones and Richard Jaffe, both Birmingham, Ala., lawyers, spent years in one another’s careers, according to Liz Brody at The Forward.
On Jaffe's website, he sits alongside Jones as they discuss their work as defense attorneys. Jaffe's Twitter feed is also infused with shared articles that talk of Jones' successes.
It's not clear who Jaffe voted for in the election, but he retweeted Jones on multiple occasions and shared stories about his campaign. He did not do the same for Moore.
Kayla Moore, Roy Moore's wife, caught the political world off-guard the night before the Dec. 12 special election to replace Jeff Sessions as a senator from Alabama when she referenced Jaffe in a campaign speech.
“Fake news will tell you that we don’t care for Jews. I tell you all this because I’ve seen it also I just want to set the record straight while they’re here,” Kayla Moore said at a campaign rally in Midland City, Ala., waving at the media. “One of our attorneys is a Jew!”
Kayla Moore made the remarks after claims that the Moore family hated Jewish people surfaced after her husband appeared to suggest Jewish billionaire George Soros was going to hell.
"He's still going to the same place that people who don't recognize God and morality and accept his salvation are going," Moore said of Soros last month during a local radio interview.
On Dec. 12, Doug Jones beat Roy Moore in the special election for Alabama's open U.S. Senate seat.
