'Squad' member Cori Bush defended Antifa during summer riots
Democrats won't condemn Antifa violence after party office targeted
National radio host Dana Loesch joins 'Fox News Primetime' with reaction to Biden inauguration, subsequent violence
Newly elected Rep. Cori Bush, D-Mo., praised Antifa in 2020 when the group was coming under fire for perpetrating violence in major U.S. cities.
"AntiFa [sic] was on the ground with us during the Ferguson Uprising working to keep black protesters safe (even when the cameras had left) when a lot of other folks weren’t," Bush, a new member of the progressive "Squad," said in a tweet from June.
Just days prior to Bush's tweet, former President Trump had announced his intention to designate Antifa as a terrorist organization.
TACOMA RIOT EYEWITNESS DESCRIBES VIOLENCE, VANDALISM AT HANDS OF ANTIFA
Bush and others have been condemning other groups' violence, particularly after the riots that took place at the Capitol on Jan. 6.
Those and other criticisms have prompted conservatives to question their sincerity in condemning violence given their relative silence during last year's demonstrations. As the nation enters 2021, Antifa continues to wreak havoc in Portland and Seattle.
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Bush's suggestion that Antifa is an organized group appeared to contradict comments by then-candidate Joe Biden during the 2020 presidential race. During a debate with Trump, Biden referenced FBI Director Christopher Wray's conclusion that Antifa was "an idea, not an organization."
Antifa has been blamed for a wide range of violent incidents in U.S. cities. Former Attorney General William Barr previously told CNN: "I’ve talked to every police chief in every city where there has been major violence and they all have identified Antifa as the ramrod for the violence."
Fox News' Edmund DeMarche contributed to this report.
