House

Trump ramps up attacks on Tlaib

President Trump on Wednesday ramped up his criticism of Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.) a day after he was criticized for calling Jewish people who vote for Democrats disloyal.

Trump has repeatedly made Tlaib a target of his insults and last week urged Israel to not allow her and Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) to travel to Israel and the West Bank, saying it would show great “weakness.”

“Rep Tlaib wants to cut off aid to Israel. This is the new face the of Democrat Party?” he tweeted on Wednesday. “Read the AOC PLUS 3 statements on their hatred of Jews and Israel,” Trump tweeted, in reference to Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), another frequent target of his tweets.

{mosads}After a series of Twitter attacks on the “squad” of progressive freshman congresswomen that includes Tlaib, Ocasio-Cortez, Omar and Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.) earlier in the summer, Trump has escalated his attacks on Tlaib and Omar in particular in recent weeks.

Trump has made it clear he wants his supporters to see the congresswomen as major figures in the Democratic Party, even though as first-year freshmen in the House they have comparatively little power despite large followings online.

Tlaib fired back at Trump on Tuesday, suggesting that the escalating salvos against her served as a distraction from an announcement that U.S. Steel would temporarily lay off nearly 200 workers at its plant in Michigan.

Yesterday, as Trump continued his criticism of Omar and Tlaib, he told reporters “Jewish people that vote for a Democrat — I think it shows either a total lack of knowledge or great disloyalty,” sparking condemnation from Jewish groups.