In a recent interview on CNN's "NewsNight," Rep.
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) criticized Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis's (R) characterization of all Gazans as antisemitic, describing it as "incredibly destructive and dangerous.".
Ocasio-Cortez addressed DeSantis's comments directly, stating, "I also want to address something very specific about what Governor DeSantis said when he said, quote unquote, all Gazans are antisemitic. How incredibly destructive and dangerous that rhetoric is."
She linked such rhetoric to a recent violent incident involving a Muslim child. "We just had a 6-year-old boy stabbed 26 times this morning because of rhetoric like that," she said, referring to an alleged hate crime outside Chicago.
The congresswoman further condemned DeSantis's comments, stating, "And it is dangerous. It is unacceptable. It is reckless, and no leader in the United States of America should be amplifying a message like that."
DeSantis, a potential 2024 GOP presidential candidate, has recently argued against accepting Gazans as refugees in the United States. He claimed, "If you look at how they behave, not all of them are Hamas, but they are all antisemitic. None of them believe in Israels right to exist."
DeSantis's remarks have sparked backlash. Rep. Maxwell Frost (D-Fla.) challenged DeSantis, asking why he did not similarly condemn neo-Nazis in Florida. Frost stated, "What a racist comment from a racist man," and added, "The Nazis that have been marching up and down the state harassing the public [and] synagogues wave DeSantis 2024 flags."
In the CNN interview, Ocasio-Cortez also suggested that regional partners should assist Gazan refugees displaced by the recent conflict. However, she emphasized that the U.S. still has a role to play. "I think theres something to be said about the regions partners being able to support and step up Palestinians," she said. "However, that does not abdicate the United States from our historic role that weve played in the world of accepting refugees and allowing people to restart their lives here."
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