The White House’s nominee for a top position at the Pentagon has a history of making Islamophobic and inflammatory remarks against prominent Democratic politicians, including falsely calling former President Barack Obama a Muslim, CNN reports.
Retired Army Brig. Gen. Anthony Tata, a frequent guest on Fox News and ardent defender of President Donald Trump, was nominated to become the undersecretary of defense for policy.
If confirmed by the Senate, Tata would become the third highest official in the Pentagon overseeing the Defense Department’s policy shop, including its national security and defense strategy, nuclear deterrence and missile defense policy, and security cooperation plans and policies. The policy chief also closely advises the secretary of defense on national security and supports the Department of Defense’s program and budget decisions.
In several tweets from 2018, Tata said that Islam was the “most oppressive violent religion I know of” and claimed Obama was a “terrorist leader” who did more to harm the US “and help Islamic countries than any president in history.”
After a Twitter user wrote to him that “Obama was not a terrorist sympathizer,” Tata replied, “No he was just a terrorist leader,” adding in another tweet, “He gave $150B to #1 state sponsor of terror so they could destroy Israel.”
In another Twitter engagement, Tata reiterated that Obama was a terrorist because of his dealings with Iran, noting that the only joke was that it was considered a conspiracy theory.
“I was joking! Of course it’s not a conspiracy theory. He did more to harm US vital interests and help Islamic countries than any president in history. The Iran deal alone is more than enough evidence of his drive to subvert US national interests to Islam and a globalist agenda,” Tata wrote.
During a radio appearance from 2018, Tata called Obama an anti-Semite who wanted to give Iran money so the country could fund terrorist organizations, and that unlike Obama, Trump wanted to defeat ISIS.
Following the publication of this story, Tata deleted several of his tweets, screenshots of which were captured by CNN’s KFile.
Tata, in one radio appearance, speculated the Iran deal was born out of Obama’s “Islamic roots” in an attempt “to help Iranians and the greater Islamic state crush Israel.”
Tata also lashed out at prominent Democratic politicians and the media on Twitter, such as California Reps. Maxine Waters and Nancy Pelosi, who he said “have always been the same violent extremists.” In another tweet, Tata called Waters a “vicious race baiting racist.” He used a hashtag in a different tweet that insinuated CNN anchor Don Lemon was on “the liberal plantation.”
The White House’s nomination of Tata on Thursday comes after the February ouster of Pentagon policy chief John Rood, who warned against withholding military aid to Ukraine last year, as the White House moves to install loyalists and prominent Trump defenders across the administration.
Tata is a regular defender of the President and his policy decisions, including Trump’s intervention in the war crimes case of Navy SEAL Eddie Gallagher that forced Navy Secretary Richard Spencer to resign.
Tata did not respond to a request for comment. A Pentagon spokeswoman referred questions about Tata to the White House. Spokespeople for the White House did not respond to requests for comment.
The retired general currently works as a senior adviser in the Department of Defense, and previously served for 28 years in the Army before retiring in 2009.
An Army investigation conducted in 2007 found he committed adultery with at least two women — a crime under military law — and falsified a legal document, according to The News and Observer. The Army declined to penalize Tata, and Tata provided his military records to the News and Observer, which showed glowing reviews from his tenure.
After his tenure in the Army, Tata worked as the chief operating officer for District of Columbia Public School district from 2009 to 2011 and later as the superintendent of Wake County’s public schools in North Carolina from 2011 to 2012. Later, he served as North Carolina’s transportation secretary. Tata is also the author of a dozen military adventure books and is best known for his “Threat” series.
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