Mayoral candidate Anthony Weiner got into a heated exchange on Wednesday with a man in Brooklyn who criticized him for being "married to an Arab" and called him a "scumbag," CNN reported.
The controversial remarks were yelled at a bakery in Brooklyn's Borough Park neighborhood where Weiner had purchased a coffee and cookies.
"You're a real scumbag," said an irritated Saul Kessler to Weiner.
Weiner then said, to no person particularly, "Very nice, that's a charming guy right there." It was after that response that Kessler yelled, "Married to an Arab."
Kessler's comment was referring to Weiner's wife, Huma Abedin, who is Muslim.
The already scorned candidate retorted, saying "Very nice, in front of children... That is charming" to Kessler, who kept talking over Weiner and called him "disgusting."
"It takes one to know one, jackass," Weiner responded.
Their indirect exchange of words led to a face-to-face discussion where Kessler accused Weiner of doing "disgusting things" and said he should be ashamed to walk around in public. After listening to him, Weiner asked, "And you're a perfect person? You're my judge? What rabbi taught you that?"
Kessler then went back to talking about his wife, asking Weiner -- who dealt with multiple sexting scandals -- "think about your wife, how could you take the person you're most closest to ... and betray her?"
Their confrontation lasted for about one more minute until Weiner walked away.
"He has every right to (challenge me). It's America."
Despite a decline in the polls following his most recent sexting scandal, Weiner remains in the race for mayor of New York City. In a conversation with reporters later that day, he did not seem too affected by the incident in Brooklyn.
"Look, you're allowed to say stuff to me," he said. "But if you're going to say vile things about me and my family, you should expect that I'm going to go back at you. Hecklers don't get a chance to necessarily get the last word if they cross the line."
CNN reached out to Kessler later on Wednesday, who fully admitted to his controversial remarks.
"It's just a certain feeling I have as a Jew," said Kessler, 51. "And my attitude is that -- not all Arabs -- but, in general, ... they want to kill every Jew."
Kessler also suggested that a Jewish person marrying a Muslim is "like a betrayal." However, he said he should have acted differently in the situation and shouldn't have called him a scumbag.
