Rep. Paul Gosar (R-Ariz.) offered an explanation for the manipulated anime video he posted on Twitter, saying “it is a symbolic cartoon.”
The video showed Gosar attacking Rep. Alexandria-Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) and President Joe Biden.
He said in a statement, “I do not espouse violence or harm towards any Member of Congress or Mr. Biden.”
Gosar explained the cartoon “depicts the symbolic nature of a battle between lawful and and unlawful policies and in no way intended to be a targeted attack against Representative Cortez or Mr. Biden. It is a symbolic cartoon. It is not real life.”
He continued, “Congressman Gosar cannot fly. The hero of the cartoon goes after the monster, the policy monster of open borders.”
Concluding his statement, Gosar vowed to “always fight to defend the rule of law, securing our borders, and the America First agenda.”
Rep. Paul Gosar in a new statement is addressing the blowback from the anime video that caught the attention of top Democrats.
— Olivia Beavers (@Olivia_Beavers) November 9, 2021
“I do not espouse violence or harm towards any Member of Congress or Mr. Biden," he writes. pic.twitter.com/CwfzHcKVC7
The White House responded to the video during a press briefing Tuesday, as IJR reported.
“There is absolutely no place for any violence of any sort in this political system,” White House principal deputy press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said.
She added, “I don’t want to go any further than that. I leave it to the social media platform for how they’re going to move forward on that. But there is no place for any type of violence or that type of language in the political system and it should not be happening and we should be condemning it.”
The video also included an image of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.).
She reacted to the video in a tweet, saying, “Threats of violence against Members of Congress and the President of the United States must not be tolerated.”
Threats of violence against Members of Congress and the President of the United States must not be tolerated. @GOPLeader should join in condemning this horrific video and call on the Ethics Committee and law enforcement to investigate. https://t.co/qX8kMbiZ8n
— Nancy Pelosi (@SpeakerPelosi) November 9, 2021
Her statement continues, “[Kevin McCarthy] should join in condemning this horrific video and call on the Ethics Committee and law enforcement to investigate.”