After Pro-Israel Tweet, Andrew Yang Draws Republican Praise And Criticism From AOC

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In yet one more awkward stumble in his mayoral marketing campaign, Andrew Yang was pressured to defend a pro-Israel tweet that thrust him into the middle of nationwide consideration, drawing reward from Republicans and a harsh rebuke from one of many Democratic Celebration’s greatest stars, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.

The controversy started after Yang tweeted on Monday that he was “standing with the individuals of Israel” because the nation undergoes one in all its worst battles in years with Palestinians. Israeli airstrikes at Gaza have killed at the very least 32 Palestinians whereas police clashes in Jerusalem have injured at the very least 300 Palestinians. Israel has reported at the very least three deaths and 100 wounded.

The longstanding Center East battle has through the years more and more divided Democrats, with youthful and extra liberal members of the social gathering against what they see as Israel’s unblinking oppression of Palestinians.

Yang’s tweet instantly set off a storm of criticism, together with from an assortment of distinguished people.

In the meantime, a number of conservative Republicans rushed to Yang’s assist. Senator Ted Cruz, a Republican from Texas, tweeted, “Bravo to Yang for opposing the rabidly pro-Hamas & anti-Israel assaults from fellow Dems Omar & Tlaib.”

Stephen Miller, a former advisor to President Donald Trump, praised Yang as being “exactly right,” whereas Meghan McCain, the conservative TV celeb, lent the candidate her assist with a retweet accompanied by the hashtag #YANGGANG.

By Tuesday afternoon, a Queens neighborhood group that Yang was supposed to assist distribute groceries to Muslim households had requested him to not present up. Md Jabed Uddin, the treasurer on the Astoria Welfare Society, mentioned he’d canceled Yang’s invitation after receiving a barrage of involved calls and texts from neighborhood members Monday night time.

“It will not be political signal to come back right here and communicate,” Uddin mentioned. “That’s why I wanted to decide.”

The middle deliberate to provide out meals to 300 households celebration of Eid, the Muslim vacation that begins Wednesday and marks the tip of a month of fasting throughout Ramadan. Uddin mentioned he thinks Yang made a mistake and may apologize to the town’s Muslim neighborhood.

“Earlier than management decides, we have now to assume twice about what we’re going to say, particularly as a result of he’s working for mayor,” he mentioned. “We all know that he’s a pleasant individual, however I feel [he] divided the neighborhood.”

Jake Sporn, a spokesperson for the Yang marketing campaign, declined to remark additional. Requested at a press convention Tuesday concerning the occasion’s cancelations Yang mentioned, “the organizers of the occasion determined it will be higher if we didn’t attend and we had been blissful to abide by their needs.”

Confronted by two people on the occasion who requested him about his tweet, Yang referred to as the violence “heartbreaking” however stopped wanting condemning Israel for its actions.

The day was capped by a tweet from Ocasio-Cortez, whose district consists of Astoria. The congresswoman, who’s but to endorse a mayoral candidate however might show to be a strong affect on the race, referred to as Yang “completely shameful.”

Yang is one in all a number of candidates, together with Eric Adams and Scott Stringer, which have tried to court docket votes from conservative and Orthodox Jews in New York Metropolis, though none have confronted as a lot scrutiny.

Ray McGuire tweeted a message saying, “I stand proudly with Israel.” Equally, Adams, the Brooklyn borough president, mentioned, “I stand shoulder to shoulder with the individuals Israel right now of disaster.”

However some seen that Adams’s tweet was briefly deleted earlier than resurfacing inside an hour.

On Wednesday morning, Yang launched a prolonged assertion saying that his personal volunteers confronted him yesterday, expressing they “felt that my tweet was overly simplistic in my therapy of a battle that has an extended and sophisticated historical past filled with tragedies.” He added that he “did not acknowledge the ache and struggling of each side.”



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