Bolton blasts Sanders for AIPAC snub, asks if he’d make Ilhan Omar secretary of state
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}President Trump's former national security adviser John Bolton on Tuesday railed against Bernie Sanders' "extremism" for snubbing the AIPAC conference and wryly suggested he might even make Rep. Ilhan Omar his secretary of state if elected president.
Bolton, Trump's hawkish ousted aide, blasted Sanders for rejecting the pro-Israel conference and asked whether he'd add Omar, one of the first Muslim women elected to Congress, to his potential cabinet.
AIPAC BLASTS SANDERS AFTER 2020 FRONTRUNNER SAYS HE’LL SKIP CONFERENCE
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"America is getting a full dose of @berniesanders extremism. He glorifies communist Cuba & now he's calling @AIPAC 'leaders who express bigotry.' In the past, he's called the Israeli govt 'racist.' What's next? @IlhanMN as Sec of State?" Bolton tweeted.
The American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) late Sunday also called out Sanders over his decision to skip its conference next month in Washington. Sanders cited his concern that the group provides a platform for leaders to "express bigotry" and oppose basic Palestinian rights.
Sanders, who is on the heels of a big win in the Nevada caucuses, took to Twitter on Sunday to voice his concern about the influential lobby. The Vermont senator vowed that if elected president he would work with both Israelis and Palestinians to bring peace and stability to the region.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}AIPAC wasted little time to respond to the public rebuke and called his comments an ill-informed and "odious attack." The pro-Israel lobby said Sanders never attended a conference, which is "evident in the outrageous comment."
"Senator Sanders is insulting his very own colleagues and the millions of Americans who stand with Israel," the statement read. "Truly shameful."
Bolton, who declined to testify in the House's impeachment inquiry and was never subpoenaed by the Senate, has been trying to build anticipation for his forthcoming book.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}He's taken aim at Sanders, the Democratic front-runner, for his past comments about support for communist Cuban leader Fidel Castro's literacy programs. Sanders defended them recently on an interview with CBS's "60 Minutes."
"We're very opposed to the authoritarian nature of Cuba but you know, it's unfair to simply say everything is bad. You know? When Fidel Castro came into office, you know what he did? He had a massive literacy program. Is that a bad thing? Even though Fidel Castro did it?" Sanders told Anderson Cooper in the interview that aired Sunday.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Bolton tweeted Monday that Sanders "thinks Castro's communist Cuba is not all bad, what does he have to say about Maduro? Praising the actions of a brutal dictator is abhorrent and unacceptable. Bernie is revealing the extent of his extremism."
Fox News' Edmund DeMarche contributed to this report.