The White House on Wednesday called New York Democrat Tom Suozzi's victory over Republican Mazi Pilip a “devastating repudiation” of former President Trump and Republicans in Congress.
Suozzi defeated Pilip in a special election to replace former Rep. George Santos, RN.Y. White House spokesman Andrew Bates highlighted Suozzi's support for the bipartisan border security bill that crashed and burned in Congress last week, saying he put it “at the forefront of his campaign.”
“When President Biden worked with Republicans and Democrats in the Senate to pass the toughest, fairest border security legislation in decades, President Johnson killed it: he chose politics, Donald Trump and fentanyl traffickers over the Union of Border Patrol and U.S. national security,” Bates said. . “Yesterday, voters proved him right with a devastating repudiation of congressional Republicans. Tom Suozzi put support for bipartisan border legislation – and the fact that congressional Republicans killed it for political reasons – at the forefront of his case “
“The results are unmistakable. And right now, House Republicans are once again putting politics before national security, siding with Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin and Tehran against America's defense industrial base, against NATO, against Ukraine and against our interests in India. -Pacific,” he added.
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The White House on Wednesday called New York Democrat Tom Suozzi's victory over Republican Mazi Pilip a “devastating repudiation” of former President Trump and Republicans in Congress. (AP Photo/Stefan Jeremías)
Meanwhile, Trump himself on Wednesday denounced Pilip as a “dumb woman” and claimed that she had tried to distance herself from Trump during his campaign. Pilip did not support Trump and said she would not support him in the general election if he were convicted of a crime, but she did not criticize him.
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“Republicans just don't learn, but maybe she was still a Democrat? I have an almost 99% endorsement success rate in the primaries, and also a very good number in the general election, but I just watched this woman “so dumb, Mazi. Melesa Pilip, running in a race where she didn't have my back and tried to 'straddled the fence', when she easily would have WON if she understood anything about MODERN politics in America,” Trump wrote on social media on Wednesday.
Former President Trump attempted to distance himself from Mazi Pilip's defeat in New York by highlighting the fact that she had not endorsed him. (Spencer Platt)
“I STAY OUT OF THE RACE, 'I WANT TO BE LOVED!' GIVE US A REAL CANDIDATE IN THE DISTRICT BY NOVEMBER. SUOZZI, I KNOW HIM WELL, HE CAN EASILY BE BEATEN!” Trump added.
Both Democrats and Republicans poured money into the race. The district had long been held by Democrats before Santos turned red in 2022. He was expelled from Congress less than a year into his term.
Democrat Tom Suozzi defeated Republican Mazi Pilips in the Feb. 13 special election to fill George Santos' vacant New York House seat. (Getty Images)
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The White House says Biden personally called Suozzi to congratulate him on his victory Tuesday night.
Fox News' Chris Pandolfo contributed to this report.
