Ocasio-Cortez Gets Slammed For Politicizing Terror Attack, Mocking Prayer, Blaming NRA

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) received intense backlash late on Thursday and into the early morning hours on Friday after she rushed to politicize terrorist attacks on two mosques in New Zealand that left 49 people dead and 20 injured.

Authorities arrested four individuals — three men and one woman — in what was described by CNN as “a coordinated and unprecedented attack that has shocked the usually peaceful nation.”

Ocasio-Cortez immediately rushed to politicize the attack, writing on Twitter: “At 1st I thought of saying, ‘Imagine being told your house of faith isn’t safe anymore.’ But I couldn’t say ‘imagine.’ Because of Charleston. Pittsburgh. Sutherland Springs. What good are your thoughts & prayers when they don’t even keep the pews safe?”

Here are some of the notable responses Ocasio-Cortez’s tweet elicited online:

“Saying thoughts and prayers do nothing in the immediate aftermath of people murdered while **praying** in their house of worship is the single dumbest f***ing nuclear take I’ve ever seen on this website. Ever,” Stephen Miller tweeted. “I don’t care who it came from. She’s an over exposed child. But *of course* it came from *that* person. Of course it did. Do yourselves a favor and mute her. Forever.”

“She reacts to a Mass Shooting in a Foreign Country with ‘Yeah, but like, the NRA is totally bad right?'” Joey Salads tweeted. “She also uses this to attack people who pray for others. AOC is an opportunistic scumbag.”

“This is incredibly insensitive to my Muslim brothers and sisters who were slain in cold blood while they were literally praying because they want to be closer to their creator and they want to become better people,” Siraj Hashmi tweeted. “Dunking on prayer to stick it to those who are religious and are legitimately praying for the victims is a helluva galaxy brain take.”

“Irony not lost on me that AOC proudly wore her ashes last week, but in the wake of a terrorist attack, mocks the validity and efficacy of prayer,” Ellen L. Carmichael tweeted. “I can only speak for myself, but as a Catholic, I’d much prefer someone not receive an ash cross on her forehead one week only to mock faith the next. It’s really gross.”

“Prayer is the reason for places of worship,” Jon Gabriel tweeted.

“I’m not sure how thoughtless and callous you would need to be to say the things that AOC said tonight…. but she doesn’t deserve that seat in Congress,” Mickey White tweeted. “Do better New York.”

“My God, you’re a terrible person,” Richard Armande Mills tweeted.

“These poor, innocent people were murdered by a despicable terrorist in their house of prayer, and you choose to denigrate prayer in the aftermath?” Chet Cannon tweeted. “What is wrong with you?”

“Right on cue (or rather, Left on cue): Blasting innocent people for praying about innocent people of faith murdered by a faithless evildoer in a house of worship where people gather to…pray,” Michelle Malkin tweeted.

“‘What good are your thoughts & prayers…?’ — @AOC,” Joel Pollack tweeted. “One could just as easily say: ‘What good are your laws?’ No. Please stop.”

After Ocasio-Cortez received literally thousands of comments slamming her over her remarks, she sought to deflect from her original comments by suggesting that the National Rifle Association (NRA) was somehow involved in the attack.

“(‘Thoughts and prayers’ is reference to the NRA’s phrase used to deflect conversation away from policy change during tragedies. Not directed to PM Ardern, who I greatly admire.),” Ocasio-Cortez tweeted.

“Pretty sure thoughts and prayers isn’t anyone’s phrase, and prayer especially (which you mocked earlier after what happened in a house of prayer?) is a real action, a petition to, a conversation with, God — in this case, to request protection, comfort for those suffering,” Dana Loesch tweeted.

“When you send out a garbage tweet designed to mock Americans but realize it was mocking many in New Zealand Zealand as well,” Josh Jordan tweeted.

“You’re attacking Americans for something that happened on the other side of the planet and making sure the people of New Zealand don’t think you’re being political toward their leader,” Derek Hunter tweeted. “You’re a garbage person for all of it.”

“The NRA is proudly [American] and they’re not a thing in [New Zealand], but good try,” Curtis Houck tweeted. “Also, this attack on prayer needs to stop.”

“No. You mocked prayer after dozens of innocent people were murdered by a terrorist while praying in their house of worship But rather than owning up to, and apologizing for your abominable tweet, YOU deflect to the NRA. You should be ashamed of yourself,” Chet Cannon replied.

“Thoughts and prayers is an NRA phrase?” Art Tavana tweeted. “What a bizarre thing to say. . .”