Washington - President Donald Trump and House Republicans are criticizing a Democratic freshman for her remarks about the Holocaust and the creation of Israel.

Michigan Democrat Rashida Tlaib told a Yahoo News podcast that she gets “a calming feeling” when she thinks of how her Palestinian ancestors suffered to create the state of Israel. She said: “All of it was in the name of trying to create a safe haven for Jews, post-the Holocaust, post-the tragedy and the horrific persecution of Jews across the world at that time.”

Trump tweeted Tlaib “obviously has tremendous hatred of Israel and the Jewish people.” That echoed earlier comments by House Republicans. Tlaib said Republicans were twisting her words to create “vile attacks” on her.