In times of tragedy, elected officials and other leaders are often called upon to act as a steady hand, urge calm, and show signs of leadership.
That’s not what Sen. John Kennedy (R-LA) did this week, following the attack in New Orleans when a man drove a car into a crowd, killing 15 people and injuring many others. Kennedy appeared at a press conference, and when he was told that a reporter from NBC News was “here on the right” — about where in the room the reporter was standing — and Kennedy quipped “Oh, that’s [an] unusual position.”
After the reporter appeared to answer “I don’t get it,” Kennedy answered “you wouldn’t.”
Reporter: NBC is here on the right
Kennedy: That’s an unusual position
Reporter: I don’t get it
Kennedy; You wouldn’t pic.twitter.com/wYxDDIz0Gf
— Acyn (@Acyn) January 1, 2025
Also, per the Daily Beast, Kennedy vowed to “raise fresh hell” and “chase the federal government who are responsible for telling us what happened like they stole Christmas.”
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He also insulted Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas at the presser, declaring that “I did talk to the Secretary of Homeland Security a little while ago, and I told him that, with all the respect I could muster, that we expect to put the full force and resources of the federal government behind this investigation.” He was insinuating, with no apparent evidence, that the government was somehow lying about the circumstances of the attack.
Some called Kennedy “tone deaf” for making jokes, and engaging in cheap partisan politicking, following a violent incident in which many people were killed. Among those ripping Kennedy were former MSNBC host Keith Olbermann:
Senator John Kennedy of Louisiana is a useless piece of shit saying all the wrong things at the wrong time for all the wrong reasons. What a tone deaf, selfish, senile motherfucker
— Keith Olbermann (@KeithOlbermann) January 1, 2025
Others noted that Kennedy appeared to shove FBI special agent Alethea Duncanout of the way to get to the microphone.
Per CNN, the FBI will brief Congress Thursday about the New Orleans attack. Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) has written a lette rto Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY), who will serve as the chairman of the Senate Homeland Security Committee in the new Congress, asking for Mayorkas and outgoing FBI Director Christopher Wray to testify before the committee.
Melania Trump, for her part, authored her “thoughts and prayers” to those affected by the attack.
The incidents of violence that have impacted our communities are deeply concerning. The brutality must stop.
My heartfelt thoughts and prayers are with the families who are experiencing such profound grief and loss.
Let us strive for a future where peace prevails.
— MELANIA TRUMP (@MELANIATRUMP) January 1, 2025
Featured image via screengrab
