Political commentator Ana Kasparian escalated a public dispute with U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez this week, challenging the New York Democrat’s record on U.S. military aid to Israel after Ocasio-Cortez condemned an alleged plot targeting a pro-Palestinian activist.
The feud began Saturday when Ocasio-Cortez denounced what authorities describe as a foiled plot against Nerdeen Kiswani, a pro-Palestinian activist based in Hoboken, N.J.
“Today, the FBI and NYPD disrupted a plot by a member of a pro-Israel terrorist organization to assassinate Nerdeen Kiswani,” Ocasio-Cortez wrote on social media. “This is a reprehensible act of political violence. There is no place for it in our city nor our country.”
Federal and New York City law enforcement said they disrupted the alleged plot, which included a planned firebombing of Kiswani’s home. Authorities identified Alexander Heifler as the suspect and said the plot had ties to pro-Israel extremist groups, including the Jewish Defense League.
Kasparian responded to Ocasio-Cortez’s statement with sarcasm. “You should vote to send Israel more money for weapons!” she wrote.
Ocasio-Cortez denied the characterization and went on the offensive. “I never have,” she wrote. “Feel free to continue lying publicly, though. Those checks don’t cash themselves, and you aren’t talented enough to be relevant with the truth.”
Kasparian fired back in a lengthy tweet disputing Ocasio-Cortez’s account of her voting record.
“Sure, I might be untalented. Up to others to decide,” Kasparian wrote. “But I can deduce that voting ‘no’ on legislation that would cut arms to Israel amounts to supporting U.S.-funded arms to Israel…as they carry out war crimes and atrocities daily.”
Kasparian pointed to two votes at the center of the dispute. In 2021, Ocasio-Cortez initially voted against a standalone bill to provide $1 billion in additional funding for Israel’s Iron Dome missile defense system on top of the $3.8 billion the U.S. already provides annually before changing her vote to “present” amid pressure from colleagues. She was visibly emotional following the vote.
“You got a little pressure from your corrupt colleagues, changed your vote to ‘present’ and then wept about it…literally,” Kasparian wrote. “Is that what political ‘talent’ looks like? Israel was enjoying an economic surplus that year. We, on the other hand, were not.”
The second vote in question came in 2025, when Ocasio-Cortez voted against an amendment that would have cut $500 million for the Iron Dome from a defense spending bill, effectively preserving that funding. The vote drew criticism from liberal and pro-Palestinian advocacy groups.
Kasparian framed both votes as contradicting Ocasio-Cortez’s public positioning on U.S. military support for Israel.
“In addition to voting no on that legislation last year, in 2021 you originally and correctly voted ‘no’ on a bill to funnel an extra $1 billion to Israel,” she wrote, addressing Ocasio-Cortez directly. “As for cashing checks, I’d respectfully ask you to remember who pays yours. It’s the people you’re lying to right now.”
Ocasio-Cortez has maintained that she has not voted to send Israel weapons funding. She voted against a broader foreign aid package in 2023 following the October escalation of the conflict in Gaza.
