Louisiana Sen. John Kennedy (R) told an Arab American witness to “hide your head in a bag” after repeatedly asking her if she supported terrorist groups during a congressional hearing on hate crimes.
On Tuesday Maya Berry, the executive director of the Arab American Institute testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee about hate crimes in the U.S.
Kennedy started his line of questioning by asking Berry if she supports Hamas and doubled down when Barry said she does not.
“You support Hamas, do you not?” Kennedy asked Berry, according to a clip shared by Mediaite.
“Oddly enough, I’m going to say thank you for that question because it demonstrates the purpose of our hearing today,” she said, before he interrupted, asking for a yes or no answer.
“Hamas is a foreign terrorist organization that I do not support,” Berry said. “But you asking the executive director of the Arab American Institute that question very much puts the focus on the issue of hate in our country.”
Kennedy then asked if she supported Hezbollah.
“Again, I find this line of questioning extraordinarily disappointing,” Berry said.
“You have Arab American constituents that you represent in your great state,” she added. “The answer is I don’t support violence, whether it’s Hezbollah, Hamas, or any other entity that invokes it. So no, Sir.”
Kennedy them asked Berry if she “support or oppose Iran and their hatred of Jews?”
“Again, I’m going to emphasize Iran, Hezbollah, Hamas – none of them is going to..” Berry began before Kennedy interrupted saying “you can’t bring yourself to say no, can you?”
“As a Muslim woman, Sir, I’m going to tell you, I do not support Iran,” Berry said.
Kennedy also took issue with Betty’s past criticism of U.S. decision to cut funding to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine after Israel accused some of their workers of being involved in the Oct. 7 terrorist attack.
“You support Hamas, don’t you? You support UNRWA and Hamas, don’t you?” Kennedy demanded.
“I think it’s exceptionally disappointing that you’re looking at an Arab American witness before you and saying you support Hamas,” Berry responded. “I do not support Hamas.”
“You should hide your head in a bag,” Kennedy said.
Committee chairman Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) allowed Berry to respond to Kennedy after his time expired.
“Senator Durbin, thank you very much for holding this hearing and for elevating the issue of hate crime. It’s regrettable that I, as I sit here, have experienced the very issue that we’re attempting to deal with today,” she said, according to The Hill.
“This has been regrettably a real disappointment but very much an indication of the danger to our democratic institutions that we’re in now,” she added.
The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) also released a statement criticizing Kennedy’s treatment of Berry at the hearing.
“Maya Berry went before the committee to discuss hate crimes. Both Ms. Berry and the topic should have been treated with the respect and seriousness they deserve,” Robert McCaw, government affairs director at CAIR said. “Instead, Sen. Kennedy and others chose to be an example of the bigotry Arabs, Palestinians and Muslims have faced in recent months and years.”
