Sen. Josh Hawley clashed Tuesday with Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas over seemingly antisemitic comments by an employee in his department.
During a Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs hearing, the Missouri Republican pointed to Citizenship and Immigration Services officer Nejwa Ali's concerning posts.
Daily Wire reported earlier this month that Ali has posted anti-Israel and anti-Jewish rhetoric on social media platforms for years. She recently cheered on the terrorist group Hamas' deadly Oct. 7 attacks in southern Israel.
While Mayorkas acknowledged that Ali was put on administrative leave, he refused to delve into the future of her employment.
Hawley then pressed Mayorkas on the DHS' inaction, prompting the secretary to speak up.
"Your question – to suggest that that is emblematic of the men and women of the Department of Homeland Security – is despicable," Mayorkas said.
Hawley quickly interjected:
"You have employees who are celebrating genocide, and you are saying it's despicable for me to ask the question," Hawley told Mayorkas during their exchange.
The secretary, who is Jewish, then responded again:
"Number one: What I found despicable is the implication that this language, tremendously odious, actually could be emblematic of the sentiments of the 260,000 men and women of the Department of Homeland Security," Mayorkas said.
"Number two: Sen. Hawley takes an adversarial approach to me in this question, and perhaps he doesn't know my own background. Perhaps he does not know that I am the child of a Holocaust survivor," he added.
Mayorkas further explained that he found Hawley's adversarial tone "disrespectful" of him and his heritage, noting that his mother "lost almost all her family at the hands of the Nazis."
"I do not expect an apology. But I did want to say what I just articulated," Mayorkas stated.
Sen. Gary Peters, D-Mich., the panel's chair, refused Hawley's request to hit back at Mayorkas.
Luca Cacciatore ✉
Luca Cacciatore, a Newsmax general assignment writer, is based in Arlington, Virginia, reporting on news and politics.
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