From the Liveblog of
Saturday, June 1, 2024
Report: Democrats vexed by anti-Israel comments made by Ocasio-Cortez and Tlaib
Democrats are displeased over anti-Israel comments made by progressive-wing representatives Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York and Rashida Tlaib of Michigan, Axios reports.
According to the report, two incidents involving the Squad members irked Democrats, sparking both public and private condemnations.
Ocasio-Cortez appeared last week with left-wing influencer Hasan Piker on a Twitch stream and appeared to agree with Piker when he said Hamas’s October 7 massacre was a “direct consequence” of the Abraham Accords and the Trump administration’s decision to move the US embassy to Jerusalem.
In a statement, Rep. Brad Schneider of Illinois says it’s “both ignorant and abhorrent to suggest that pursuing peace… either caused or justified Hamas’s barbaric attack on Oct. 7.”
An unnamed House Democrat tells Axios that Ocasio-Cortez’s comments were “reckless” and “problematic,” and questioned why a member of Congress was appearing on the steaming site.
Meanwhile, Tlaib last weekend cast US President Joe Biden as an “enabler” of Israel’s ongoing offensive in Gaza, and asked, “Where’s your red line, President Biden?”
Tlaib gave her speech at the People’s Conference for Palestine, whose keynote speaker was the wife of a member of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine terror group who died in prison earlier this year.
Tlaib’s speech “deeply disturbed a lot of members,” another unnamed House Democrat tells Axios
