If you're in Congress, and if you're going to be posting about Memorial Day, you really ought to know what the meaning of the holiday is actually about. It's specifically to honor those servicemembers who paid the ultimate sacrifice and lost their lives in the line of duty. We also have Veterans Day to celebrate all our veterans. That appears to be too much to ask, though.
Unfortunately, Reps. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) and Cori Bush (D-MO), both members of the Squad, mixed up those holidays. Their posts from Monday have since been deleted, but there's screenshots of posts that refer to all veterans.
HAHAHA HOLY SHLIT.
— End Wokeness (@EndWokeness) May 27, 2024
Rep. Ilhan Omar and Rep. Cori Bush just deleted their Memorial Day tweets after revealing they have no clue what it is. pic.twitter.com/EsuGYAF6xS
In the case of Omar, her post read that "On #MemorialDay, we honor the heroic men and women who served our country," as she even included a hashtag that others could see, further amplifying her mistake. "We owe them more than our gratitude – they have more than earned access to quality mental health services, job opportunities, housing assistance, and the benefits they were promised." That original post went for something of a political angle as well.
Another post came from her political account and didn't go up until almost two and a half hours later. It does not include such a hashtag. "On Memorial Day, let’s say thank you to the brave men and women who selflessly sacrificed their lives in service to our country. Thank you to the families who also have sacrificed and have dedicated their time to ensuring their loved ones are remembered," it merely reads. There's no reference to the original post, though plenty have chimed in to still mock the congresswoman.
Tell us you don’t know what Memorial Day is without saying it pic.twitter.com/nAK0hWY9YD
— Carolyn (@me741776741776) May 27, 2024
Why’d you delete your first post about #memorialday ? Because you spoke about living vets when today is about those who gave all. You (or whoever on your staff that wrote it) don’t even know what the day is about.
— Lester Dent (@LesterDent) May 27, 2024
You are a disgrace. You spit on the country that saved you every…
Finally remembered what day it was? pic.twitter.com/HZtOkTvIXA
— Jason “Storm Chaser” Nelson (@RealJasonNelson) May 27, 2024
As of Monday evening, there is not even a subsequent post from her official account. The account's bio tellingly notes "Account managed by staff." While there has been no explanation, it looks like the move would just be blamed on a staffer if such an explanation were to come.
Then there's Bush, whose posts on Memorial Day came rather later in the day, and only after she also posted condemning Israel's actions in Rafah, which Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has called a "tragic mistake" when it comes to loss of civilian life there.
"This #MemorialDay & every day, we honor our veterans in St. Louis," the original post read, also going for a rather political tone. "We must invest in universal health care, affordable housing, comprehensive mental health services, and educational & economic opportunities for our veterans as we work to build a world free of war and violence."
The subsequent post from her official account still goes for a political tone. "We must continue to push to protect our service members while working to build a world free of war and violence," it now reads in part.
We know how you truly feel. pic.twitter.com/pPDXz8WX2H
— Spitfire (@DogRightGirl) May 27, 2024
As part of a military family, we will never forget. You are a cancer who doesn’t care about anyone except all of your special interests. pic.twitter.com/nWvbzJGq5A
— Valentina Gomez (@ValentinaForSOS) May 27, 2024
Just like as is the case with Omar's post, there doesn't appear to be mention of the error, not by Bush at least. Users were all too happy to remind Bush about her mistake.
Squad members such as Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) didn't even post about Memorial Day at all on Monday, though she's posted and reposted at length highlighting the death toll in Rafah. This includes the same post that Bush made when sharing Al Jazeera, a propaganda outlet that has been banned in Israel, though has still been defended by the White House.
In a particularly unhinged rant, Tlaib herself went off on Netanyahu, not buying his explanation.
This is not a war.
— Abdullah H. Hammoud (@AHammoudMI) May 27, 2024
This is a genocide. https://t.co/Uzj8lNfYYw
It’s not a war, it’s genocide.
— Nina Turner (@ninaturner) May 26, 2024
It’s not a war, it’s ethnic cleansing.
This was intentional. You don't accidentally kill massive amounts of children and their families over and over again and get to say, "It was a mistake."
— Rashida Tlaib (@RashidaTlaib) May 27, 2024
Genocidal maniac Netanyahu told us he wants to ethically cleanse Palestinians. When are you going to believe him @POTUS? https://t.co/QqrwDgwvHT
In something of a bold move, Tlaib even tagged President Joe Biden's official account. She's accused the president of genocide before, for what tepid support for Israel he's dared to show since the October 7 terrorist attack perpetrated by Hamas. That post, just weeks after th attack, even defended the use of the genocidal phrase "from the river to the sea," for which she was soon after censured for.
These posts all came from her political account; there were none from her official account, and have been no posts since May 24.
Another (dis)honorable mention is Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), who made only posted about Memorial Day from her official account, and did so by sharing pictures from an event that was something of a photo opp to for the Squad member.
This Memorial Day, we gathered in Queens to honor the brave men and women who gave their lives in defense of our nation.
— Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@RepAOC) May 27, 2024
They made the ultimate sacrifice for millions of Americans.
Their gift to all of us is one that demands our utmost respect and care — today and every day. pic.twitter.com/AETEvRQNAi
From her political account, AOC also tagged Biden's official account in condemning the civilian deaths in Rafah. "It is long past time for the President to live up to his word and suspend military aid," she also insisted, a move that Biden has already threatened and heavily criticized.
The IDF’s attack on a tent camp of innocents in Rafah is an indefensible atrocity.
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) May 27, 2024
This was done in open defiance of @POTUS’s red line and the ICJ’s call for a ceasefire.
It is long past time for the President to live up to his word and suspend military aid.
