Nancy Pelosi Under Fire For Linking Calls For Cease Fire In Israel-Hamas War To Russia

Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has come under fire for implying protests against the U.S. government’s support of Israel are linked to Russian disinformation campaigns.

Pelosi made the claims on CNN on Sunday when asked if she was worried that the rift between Democrats’ support for Israel and the progressive wing of the party’s call for a ceasefire would keep some young and progressive Democrats at home during the election.

The congresswoman took this question as an opportunity to decry the protesters who have disrupted many of President Joe Biden’s recent events and their message.

“For them to call for a cease-fire is Mr. Putin’s message,” she said. “Make no mistake this is directly connected to what he [Putin] would like to see. I think some of these protests are spontaneous and organic, and sincere, some I think are connected to Russia.”

When asked to clarify if she thought the protests were Russian plants, she said, “I don’t think they’re plants, I think some financing should be investigated, and I want to ask the F.B.I. to investigate that.”

Pelosi did not offer any evidence or reasoning behind these calls for a federal investigation into political protests.

The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation’s largest civil rights Muslim advocacy agency, was quick to denounce Pelosi, calling her claim “delusional” and her call for an investigation “downright authoritarian.”

Waleed Shahid, a former spokesperson for prominent progressive Democrats took to X (formerly Twitter) and called Pelosi’s statements, “unacceptable disinformation being spread by the most powerful Democratic party leaders.”

Pelosi’s office issued a follow-up statement on Monday that called for the “release of all hostages.” According to reports, about 136 Israeli hostages are currently being held by Gaza, and Israel is holding 5,200 Palestinian prisoners.

Her statement also clarified her support of the freedom to protest but leaned on her years of foreign affairs experience to justify her call for an investigation.

“Speaker Pelosi is acutely aware of how foreign adversaries meddle in American politics to sow division and impact our elections,” a statement read. “And she wants to see further investigation ahead of the 2024 elections.”