'We should be clear who Charlie Kirk was!' AOC slams right-wing influencer on House floor
Just moments after a divided House voted Friday to adopt a resolution “honoring the life and legacy” of Charlie Kirk in the wake of his killing last week, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) slammed the slain right-wing influencer as “ignorant” and "uneducated" for his numerous past controversial remarks, and accused House Republicans of “whitewashing American history.”
“We should be clear about who Charlie Kirk was; a man who believed that the Civil Rights Act that granted Black Americans the right to vote was a mistake,” AOC said, speaking on the House floor.
“Who, after the violent attack on Paul Pelosi, claimed that 'some amazing patriot' should bail out his brutal assailant, and accused Jews of controlling 'not just the colleges, it's the nonprofits, the movies, it's Hollywood, it's all of it.'"
AOC condemned political violence in all forms, but compared Republicans’ resolution honoring Kirk unfavorably with past resolutions condemning political violence, such as those adopted after the targeted killing of Minnesota State House minority leader Melissa Hortman, who was killed in June in an act of political violence.
Specifically, AOC took issue with portions of language included in the resolution, particularly its mention of Kirk’s “legacy,” or that Kirk had worked “tirelessly to promote unity,” a claim, AOC charged, was partisan in nature, divisive, and blatantly untrue.
“Today's resolution only underscores the majority's recklessness by choosing to author this condemnation and honoring on a purely partisan basis, instead of uniting Congress in this tragedy,” AOC said.
“...His rhetoric and beliefs were ignorant, uneducated, and sought to disenfranchise millions of Americans, far from the 'working tirelessly to promote unity' asserted by the majority in this resolution.”
AOC’s comments came after the passage of the resolution, which ultimately passed with a vote of 310-58, with 215 Republicans and 94 Democrats for the measure, and 58 Democrats voting against it.