Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, urged House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md., on Tuesday to clarify his position on Israel’s place in the world following a willingness he displayed to defend Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., in spite of her recent controversial comments about the Holocaust.
“Steny, aside from her troubling rhetoric, do you agree with her Holocaust revisionism?” Cruz tweeted. “Her argument is FALSE—the Palestinian leadership was openly pro-Nazi.”
Republicans on Capitol Hill have called on Democratic leadership to condemn Tlaib after she told Yahoo News she gets “a calming feeling” knowing that “it was my ancestors — Palestinians — who lost their land and some lost their lives” during the Nazi genocide.
Steny, aside from her troubling rhetoric, do you agree with her Holocaust revisionism? Her argument is FALSE—the Palestinian leadership was openly pro-Nazi. If Dems disagree with @RashidaTlaib ahistorical attempt to delegitimize Israel, you should say so. https://t.co/Ej7la1757E https://t.co/J3VN18W5FO
— Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) May 14, 2019
“If you read Rep. @RashidaTlaib’s comments, it is clear that President Trump and Congressional Republicans are taking them out of context,” Hoyer responded. “They must stop, and they owe her an apology.”
But critics such as Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., have deemed Tlaib’s comments anti-Semitic.
Tlaib has refused to apologize, instead blaming the president and other conservatives chastising her as purposefully singling out a Muslim woman of color.
“It’s clear the GOP has no plan for moving this country forward, instead they want to sow hate and fear based on falsehoods,” Tlaib said Monday. “They want to strip folks of healthcare, they don’t have an infrastructure plan, and they don’t even talk about combatting white supremacy.”
It’s clear the GOP has no plan for moving this country forward, instead they want to sow hate and fear based on falsehoods. They want to strip folks of healthcare, they don’t have an infrastructure plan, and they don’t even talk about combatting white supremacy. #TakeonHate https://t.co/35dQAEyYyn
— Rashida Tlaib (@RashidaTlaib) May 13, 2019
Meanwhile, Israeli scholars spent the early part of the week fact-checking the Michigan congresswoman.
“Rashida Tlaib is either completely ignorant of the history or is a deliberate liar,” one historian told Haaretz.
Cruz urged Democrats on the Hill to follow suit.
“If Dems disagree with @RashidaTlaib ahistorical attempt to delegitimize Israel, you should say so,” Cruz said.
