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Dems have history of praise for group whose leader said he was ‘happy to see’ Hamas attack Israel
Several Democrat members of Congress have a long history of public support for an organization whose leader recently ignited a firestorm over controversial comments regarding Hamas’ deadly attacks on Israeli citizens.
Nihad Awad, the executive director and co-founder of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), recently said that he was “happy to see” the October 7 Hamas invasion of Israel and that the Jewish state did not have a right to self-defense because it is an “occupying power.”
“The people of Gaza only decided to break the siege — the walls of the concentration camp — on Oct. 7,” Awad said at the 16th Annual Convention for Palestine in the U.S. on Nov. 24. “And yes, I was happy to see people breaking the siege and throwing down the shackles of their own land and walk free into their land that they were not free to walk in.”
He continued, “And yes, the people of Gaza have the right to self-defense — have the right to defend themselves. And yes, Israel as an occupying power does not have that right to self-defense.”
Awad’s comments forced the White House to scramble and scrub CAIR as a committed partner to fight antisemitism on its website. A White House spokesperson also strongly reprimanded his comments in a statement to Fox News Digital.
“We condemn these shocking, Antisemitic statements in the strongest terms,” the White House spokesperson told Fox News Digital. “The horrific, brutal terrorist attacks committed by Hamas on October 7th were, as President Biden said, ‘abhorrent’ and represent ‘unadulterated evil.’
“Meanwhile, dozens of federal lawmakers across the U.S. have previously expressed support for CAIR, as featured on the organization’s website, and some remained silent when asked by Fox News Digital about the co-founder’s stance on the horrific attacks that left 1,200 dead and others captured.
Sen. Krysten Sinema, I-Ariz., who is facing re-election in the 2024 cycle, previously applauded CAIR’s work as “advocating for a more just society” and also accepted thousands of dollars in campaign donations from former directors and chairs of the group’s Arizona chapter.
“This organization’s inspiring service is a testimony to your success in creating a nurturing and supportive, responsive organization,” said Sen. Bob Menendez, D-N.J., who is currently facing criminal bribery charges.
In 2019, Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, praised the group “for empowering American Muslims nationwide in political and social activism through our country,” as written on CAIR’s website.
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