Tim Scott calls for the expulsion of ‘Squad’ members over Hamas ‘propaganda’

Republican presidential candidate Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC) called for the expulsion of House Democratic members of the group known as the “Squad” from Congress in a new op-ed this week.

The South Carolina senator directly named progressive Reps. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI), the only Palestinian American member of Congress; Pramila Jayapal (D-WA), chairwoman of the Congressional Progressive Caucus; Ilhan Omar (D-MN); and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) in an op-ed for the New York Post.

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Scott pointed to a recent deadly strike on a Gaza hospital — for which Israel was initially blamed before intelligence experts said the failed rocket launch likely came from Palestinian Islamic Jihad, a group aligned with Hamas — as an example of the anti-Israel bias from Tlaib. The Michigan Democrat has not walked back or deleted her claims on social media that Israel was at fault for the bombings.

“The Democratic members of the so-called ‘Squad,’ such as Rep. Rashida Tlaib, parroted Hamas propaganda in social-media posts. Rather than delete her post, Tlaib kept it up,” Scott wrote. “Worse, Tlaib continued to echo the lie during a pro-Hamas rally outside the Capitol.”

Scott then listed examples of the Democrats engaging in anti-Israel actions. “Rep. Pramila Jayapal practically copy-pasted Hamas propaganda this year and called Israel ‘a racist state.’ In 2019, Rep. Ilhan Omar barely escaped House censure after invoking anti-Semitic tropes about Jews and money,” he continued before calling for their expulsion.

He also referenced comments from Ocasio-Cortez in 2021 in which she criticized President Joe Biden for “taking the side of occupation” amid the then-escalating tensions between Israel and Hamas.

“I know we shouldn’t expect more from the Squad, but we cannot have members of Congress being a part of the propaganda machine for Hamas,” he wrote.

Scott also compared the “evil incarnate” of the Oct. 7 Hamas surprise attacks against Israel to the “misinformation war” being propelled by “Squad” members and some legacy media outlets on behalf of the terrorist group. “The misinformation war could be just as if not more deadly than the ongoing conflict that has ravaged the Israeli people,” Scott warned before reiterating his opposition to American aid for Gaza civilians and money to Iran.

“We cannot send money to Iran or Hamas. Period,” Scott added. “When you give $6 billion to a country that funds terrorism, you cannot be surprised when they go and do what they always have done.”

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Scott has slammed the Biden administration’s prisoner exchange deal with Iran, in which $6 billion in frozen assets were sent to Qatar, and called for Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen to testify before the Senate Banking Committee, of which he is the ranking member. The senator also slammed the Biden administration’s announcement of $100 million in humanitarian aid to Gaza civilians instead of pressing for the return of hostages Hamas kidnapped during its attack against Israel.

“There should not be a single U.S. taxpayer dollar that risks ending up in the hands of Hamas, and any member of Congress who gives the group aid, comfort, or justification is in violation of their constitutional oath and must be removed,” Scott concluded.