Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) issued a September 24 statement acknowledging that she cried during the vote of the Iron Dome funding bill over “the complete lack of care of human beings.”
In a letter to her constituents, Ocasio-Cortez wrote that she opposed the bill but abstained from voting. She added that the $1 billion to the Iron Dome was in addition to the $3 billion already authorized toward Israeli military aid earlier in the year.
“I believe strongly that Congress should take greater scrutiny with all military funding across the world,” Ocasio-Cortez wrote. “I also believe that, for far too long, the U.S. has handled unconditional aid to the Israeli government while doing nothing to address or raise the persistent human rights abuses against the Palestinian people, and that this imbalance of power must be centered in any honest conversation about Israel and Palestine – in addition to the many other governments we militarily fund with a pattern of human rights abuses.”
She proceeded to decry the “deeply unjust” process in introducing the funding, alleging that it was slipped in the government stopgap funding bill and that the standalone bill vote was “rushed.” Ocasio-Cortez claimed that she pleaded with House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-NY) to delay the vote by a day, to no avail. This decision, Ocasio-Cortez wrote, “created a real sense of panic and horror among those in our community who otherwise engage thoughtfully in these discussions, and fueled the discussion to devolve to a point where it became clear that this vote would risk a severe devolution of the good faith community fabric that allows us to responsibly join in a struggle for human rights and dignity everywhere – from Palestine to The Bronx and Queens.”
Ocasio-Cortez then acknowledged the viral clip of her crying during the vote. “Yes I wept,” she wrote. “I wept at the complete lack of care for human beings that are impacted by these decisions. I wept at an institution choosing a path of maximum volatility and minimum consideration for its own political convenience. And I wept at the complete lack of regard I often feel our party has to its most vulnerable and endangered members of our communities – because the death threats and dangerous vitriol we’d inevitably receive by rushing such a sensitive, charged and under-considered vote weren’t worth delaying it for even a few hours to help us do the work necessary to open a conversation of understanding.”
She concluded the letter with an apology to those she had “disappointed” over her “present” vote. “I hope we can take this moment and opportunity to more deeply engage in and grow a true, substantive movement of community support for human rights around the world – which includes the cherishing and respecting the human rights of Palestinian people.”
A note to our NY-14 constituents, from Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez pic.twitter.com/mOmJrgFa4G
— Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@RepAOC) September 24, 2021
Some criticized Ocasio-Cortez’s statement.
“You voted ‘present’ because you’re salivating over Chuck Schumer’s seat,” Stop Antisemitism tweeted to Ocasio-Cortez.
You voted “present” because you’re salivating over Chuck Schumer’s seat. https://t.co/lqH5zMVOdi
— StopAntisemitism (@StopAntisemites) September 24, 2021
You voted “present” because you’re salivating over Chuck Schumer’s seat. https://t.co/lqH5zMVOdi
— StopAntisemitism (@StopAntisemites) September 24, 2021
Joel M. Petlin, Superintendent of the Kiryas Joel School District, tweeted to Ocasio-Cortez, “I know that AOC is not big on irony, but imagine what privilege it takes for a US Congresswoman to complain that her *safety was at risk* when she was prepared to vote against #IronDome funding, which literally protects innocent civilians from being killed by missiles from Hamas.”
I know that AOC is not big on irony, but imagine what privilege it takes for a US Congresswoman to complain that her *safety was at risk* when she was prepared to vote against #IronDome funding, which literally protects innocent civilians from being killed by missiles from Hamas.
— Joel M. Petlin (@Joelmpetlin) September 24, 2021
Siamak Kordestani, West Coast Director of the European Leadership Network, tweeted to Ocasio-Cortez, “How often have you spoken out against the heinous antisemitic attacks in your own city VS. how often do you unfairly denigrate the Jewish state? Answer: not nearly enough of the former, far too much of the latter.”
How often have you spoken out against the heinous antisemitic attacks in your own city VS. how often do you unfairly denigrate the Jewish state?
Answer: not nearly enough of the former, far too much of the latter. https://t.co/R7nDnJHv2f
— Sia Kordestani (@SiaKordestani) September 24, 2021
Chuck Ross, reporter at the Washington Free Beacon, tweeted, “Nowhere in this word salad does AOC explain why she voted ‘Present’ instead of just voting ‘No’ against a bill she opposed.”
Nowhere in this word salad does AOC explain why she voted “Present” instead of just voting “No” against a bill she opposed https://t.co/xcvkvoPGKt
— Chuck Ross (@ChuckRossDC) September 24, 2021
The bill had passed the House of Representatives with 420 votes in favor, nine against and two abstentions. The only other member of Congress who abstained was Representative Hank Johnson (D-GA).
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