Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., repeatedly suggested a leading Arab American activist is a Hamas supporter when she testified Tuesday at a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on hate crimes, and he told her she should hide her “head in a bag.”

The activist, Maya Berry, said repeatedly that she did not support Hamas and was “disappointed” by the minuteslong exchange toward the end of a hearing called “A Threat to Justice Everywhere: Stemming the Tide of Hate Crimes in America.”

“You are the executive director of the Arab American Institute, are you not?” Kennedy said at the beginning of the exchange. She said she was and agreed with Kennedy that she is a Democratic activist.

“You support Hamas, do you not?” Kennedy asked, referring to the militant group behind the Oct. 7 terrorist attacks on Israel. The question prompted gasps and surprised laughs from the audience.

“Senator, oddly enough, I’m going to say thank you for that question, because it demonstrates the purpose of our hearing today in a very effective way,” Berry responded. Kennedy then cut her off and insisted he needed a yes-or-no answer.

  • DogPeePoo@lemm.ee
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    3 months ago

    Grandpa Munster keeps getting worse.

    Fun fact… he’s one of the first Republicunt traitors who traveled to Moscow on the 4th of July to kiss Putin’s ring.

      • prole@lemmy.blahaj.zone
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        3 months ago

        He was also allegedly a lawyer at some point, but I find that difficult to believe.

        It’s like something happens to a boomer’s brain when they hit 40 that just drains any intelligence or empathy the person might have once had, and it’s replaced with selfishness and cruelty.

        Lead really did a number on this country.

  • prole@lemmy.blahaj.zone
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    3 months ago

    This is one of the dumbest motherfuckers that I have ever had the displeasure of hearing speak. Every single time I’ve seen this moron speak, I’ve walked away stupider.

    It is absolutely shocking to me that this man graduated high school, let alone college or fucking law school.

    Mind boggling.

    Just seeing his photograph in the thumbnail, I can hear his stupid fucking voice…

  • Makeitstop@lemmy.world
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    3 months ago

    Gotta love how he completely ignores her answers and asks follow up questions that imply she said the opposite of what she actually said. And how he repeatedly criticizes her for unequivocally stating her position in complete sentences instead of just saying yes or no, which would be less clear and easier to take out of context.

  • ikidd@lemmy.world
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    3 months ago

    Looking at his Wikipedia page, it looks like at one time this guy wasn’t a complete asshat like he is today.

    Age gets us all, but I hope I don’t become an asshole before I kick off.

    • some_guy@lemmy.sdf.org
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      3 months ago

      We also need to subtract 18 years from the average life expectancy of USA citizens and disenfranchise the elderly. They should have no say on long-term issues that they won’t live to regret.

      Also, I guarantee we’ll see proper funding for health care when they want to keep expressing their preferences a little longer.

  • some_guy@lemmy.sdf.org
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    3 months ago

    “You know what’s disappointing to me? You can’t bring yourself to say don’t support UNWRA, you don’t support Hamas, you don’t support Hezbollah and you don’t support Iran. You should hide your head in a bag,” he concluded, to gasps and yells from the audience.

    What an asshole.

    Asked by Senate Judiciary Chair Dick Durbin, D-Ill., whether she had anything she wanted to say after the Kennedy exchange, Berry said, "It’s regrettable that I, as I sit here, have experienced the very issue that we’re attempting to deal with today.

    You go, lady. You’re a badass.