Lindsey Graham stopped question about ‘Squad’ member Rashida Tlaib while in Israel

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) forcefully stopped questions to Democratic senators about Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) blaming Israel for a blast that damaged a hospital in Gaza.

Newsmax reporter Daniel Cohen asked the question during a press conference on Sunday of a bipartisan group of senators in Israel. When Cohen asked if there was “any Democrat senator here that would like to speak to Rashida Tlaib,” saying that “she still has a tweet up condemning Israel for a hospital attack,” Graham interrupted by telling the reporter not to ask about domestic matters.

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“Uh, stop. No. Stop!” Graham said. “We are here together not to talk about the problems at home, which are many.”

Tlaib had posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, last week that Israel had “bombed” a hospital, “killing 500 Palestinians,” despite the Israelis denying they caused the blast. U.S. officials, including President Joe Biden, have said the evidence does not suggest Israel was responsible for the blast. The Michigan Democrat has not removed the post.

Cohen then responded, saying that it was a fair question, to which Graham interrupted, “I have got my own view of what to say. You’re not going to screw this up. Get this guy out of here!”

The South Carolina Republican denounced Tlaib’s comments but also defended his Democratic Senate colleagues who were on the trip, saying they should not be judged by the more left-wing members of their party.

“I don’t believe what the Squad has to say at all. But I came here with Democrats and Republicans to let everybody in the world know, don’t judge every Democrat by the Squad and don’t judge every Republican by some of the things you hear,” Graham said. “Or about the House, they’ll get their act together. But we need to do our job. We need to do our job in the Senate. We need to pass a bill that will help Israel, help Ukraine. That’s at least what I think. I think the House will show up. And I’m sorry, my friend. I probably shouldn’t have said it, but my nerves are raw right now.”

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The bipartisan trip to Israel included Sens. Graham, Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Cory Booker (D-NJ), Katie Britt (R-AL), Ben Cardin (D-MD), Susan Collins (R-ME), Chris Coons (D-DE), Jack Reed (D-RI), Dan Sullivan (R-AK), and John Thune (R-SD). The trip comes on the heels of trips by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), President Joe Biden, and Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA), among other American officials.

The war in Israel was sparked by terrorist attacks committed by Hamas against Israeli civilians on Oct. 7. The conflict has resulted in more than 6,000 deaths in Israel and Gaza, according to the Associated Press, along with the deaths of at least 30 Americans.