FIRST ON FOX: GOP Sen. Tim Scott, a 2024 presidential candidate, on Wednesday blasted the progressive members of the "the Squad" after they voted against a pro-Israel resolution in Congress.
"There are sinister forces among the Radical Left in Congress," the South Carolina Republican told Fox News Digital in a statement Wednesday.
"They are giving aid and comfort to antisemitism and politicizing our relationship with our ally Israel. It’s a dangerous, reckless signal for members of Congress to send. The rest of us should send a clear message that we stand WITH Israel and AGAINST those who are sowing strife with our allies."
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Scott’s comment comes after nine Democrats – including Squad members Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Jamaal Bowman of New York, Rashida Tlaib of Michigan, Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts, and Cori Bush of Missouri – voted against a resolution to affirm that Israel is not a racist or apartheid state.
The vote came a day before Israeli President Isaac Herzog addressed a joint meeting of Congress on Wednesday.
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"The facts are clear, and the international consensus is resounding – Israel is an apartheid state," Omar's office told Fox News Digital in a statement Wednesday in response to Scott's comment. "To assert otherwise in the face of the colossal body of evidence and the consensus of the United Nations, Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, B’Tselem – the largest human rights organization in Israel – and countless others is to deny this reality."
"We're here again reaffirming Congress' support for apartheid," Tlaib, the only Palestinian American in Congress, said about the resolution. "It's an attempt to deny the reality and to normalize violence of apartheid."
"This week, we're going to hear consistently that, you know, people talking about, like, ‘Oh, this is bipartisan support here.’ But don't forget, this body, this Congress, supported the South African apartheid regime, and it was bipartisan as well."
Scott's criticism of the Squad follows strong Republican backlash in response to Democratic Rep. Pramila Jayapal, head of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, saying over the weekend that "Israel is a racist state."
Fox News Digital’s Elizabeth Elkind contributed to this report
