Anti-LGBTQ+ Rep. Claudia Tenney (R-NY) questioned the credibility of the organization behind the Nobel Peace Prize because President-elect Donald Trump has never gotten one.
Tenney was speaking to Fox News host Jackie Deangelis about her belief that U.S. allies in the Middle East are excited about Trump’s return to the presidency because of his policies toward Iran.
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“The Biden administration has appeased the Iranian administration,” she said. “President Trump is going to stand tough.”
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“I think Iran recognizes it, and I think the people in the Middle East, all of our allies there, are very excited about the prospects of President Trump being in… and bringing back the Abraham Accords… really just an incredibly novel concept that President Trump spearheaded.”
The Abraham Accords — signed on September 15, 2020 — normalized relations between Israel, Sudan, Morocco, Bahrain, and the United Arab Emirates. While touted as one of the highlights of Trump’s foreign policy, expertshave identified several flaws with the accords.
Yet, Tenney believes the Norwegian Nobel Committee’s lack of recognition for Trump – one of the most divisive, fearmongering, violence-inspiring leaders in United States history – merely means the committee itself should be questioned.
“[The Abraham Accords are] why I actually nominated President Trump for a Nobel Peace Prize, because he’s probably the only world leader who came up with an incredible deal who hasn’t been nominated,” she said. “But that just tells you the credibility of that organization.”
Tenney has made a name for herself with her extremist views.
In 2022, she shared a doctored image of the house that supposedly belonged to the man who allegedly beat Paul Pelosi – the husband of Rep. Nancy Pelosi (R-CA) – with a hammer. The picture of the house was photoshopped to include five white men in shorts with short haircuts – which is apparently what she thought gay men look like – holding oversized hammers in front of the house. The image was a reference to the right-wing myth that Paul Pelosi was secretly gay and got attacked by a lover.
She also voted against the Respect for Marriage Act, claiming that the bill – which requires the federal and state governments to recognize marriages performed in other states if the Supreme Court overturns marriage equality – would be used to “target those with deeply held religious beliefs” and “faith-based organizations.”
Last year, Tenney voted for a bill to ban transgender students from participating in school sports, referring to transgender girls as “biological men” in a statement. She has continued that fight this year as well.
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