Rep. Paul Gosar addresses backlash to violent anime edit, likening the video to 'symbolic portrayal' of fight over immigration policy
- Rep. Paul Gosar responded to outcry over an edited anime parody video he posted to Twitter.
- The lawmaker said the video was a symbolic portrayal of Congress' battle over immigration policy.
Arizona Rep. Paul Gosar addressed backlash to a violent anime edit he posted on his Twitter account this weekend, likening the video to a symbolic representation of the impending Congressional fight over immigration policy.
The Arizona lawmaker on Sunday tweeted an edited anime scene depicting a character with his face edited onto it using two swords to slash the back of the neck of a large character featuring Ocasio-Cortez's face. The "Attack on Titan" parody also featured the Gosar character approaching a figure featuring President Joe Biden's face with his blades drawn.
Gosar included the caption "Any anime fans out there?"
The tweet, which had surpassed 3 million views as of Monday night, has since been removed following outcry from many of his Democratic colleagues, including Ocasio-Cortez herself.
In a lengthy statement released Tuesday night, Gosar confirmed that his office produced the video and called the negative response a "gross mischaracterization" of the post.
"I do not espouse violence or harm towards any member of Congress or Mr. Biden," the representative wrote. "The video depicts the fight taking place next week on the House floor and symbolizes the battle for the soul of America when Congress takes up Mr. Biden's $4 trillion spending bill that includes amnesty for millions of illegal aliens already in our country and was not meant to depict any harm or violence against anyone portrayed in the anime."
The lawmaker continued to explain the purported symbolism within the minute-and-a-half clip, saying Ocasio-Cortez represents Democrats' "open border amnesty agenda," while the depiction of Biden pertains to his "administration's decision to leave the border open while illegal aliens invade from all points."
In reality, the Build Back Better framework includes scaled-back immigration policies that would advance the registry date for immigrants who have lived in the US for more than 11 years to apply for permanent residence, as well as provide additional funding to restore the availability of immigrant visas and decrease the backlog on processing green cards.
Since Biden took office in 2021, the federal government has maintained a public health policy known as Title 42, which allows for the expulsion of most asylum-seekers in the face of the coronavirus pandemic, a far-cry from Gosar's alleged "open border policy."
Gosar's statement ends with a final emphasis that the video was "in no way intended to be a targeted attack against Representative Cortez or Mr. Biden."
"It is not real life. Congressman Gosar cannot fly," it said. "The hero of the cartoon goes after the monster, the policy monster of open borders."