On Monday, a Democratic Rep. received criticism for telling DOGE CEO Elon Musk, “Go back South Africa”, and asking, “What in hell is he doing here?”

Elon Musk: “It’s interesting that yesterday, I watched a video where Elon said the Italians should stay in Italy and the Chinese should stay in China.” My question to Elon is: “What the hell are you doing here in America?” asked Democratic Congresswoman Nydia Vélezquez of New York.

“Go back to South Africa,” Rep. Velazquez said.

Velazquez repeated a claim that was promoted in social media regarding an Elon Musk 2023 interview, which liberal fact-checker Snopes had deemed “false”.

Velazquez added, born in Puerto Rico himself, that fighting DOGE was a fight for the “soul of our country.”

Conservatives have criticized Velazquez on social media for comments she made about Musk’s immigration status.

“Unhinged,” Bobby LaValley, Rapid Response Director for House Speaker Mike Johnson, posted on X.

The White House Rapid Response Team added “Completely deranged” in a posting on X.

Greg Price, White House Rapid Response, posted this on X. “Elon has broken their brains so much that Democrats are now embracing nativism,” he wrote.

“Nydia Velasquez has finally found an immigrant she doesn’t like,” Claremont Institute Senior Fellow Jeremy Carl posted on X. “Not the tens of thousands of illegals in her district who live off of our tax dollars – but America’s greatest entrepreneur, a White immigrant. When the left tells you who they are, believe them.”

Right Turn Strategies’ President Chris Barron wrote on X: “Imagine what would happen if a Republican had said that about a liberal.”

Velazquez and fellow Democrats gathered in front of the HUD Building to protest Musk’s efforts to cut programs vital for the daily needs of Americans. The Trump Administration has rejected this criticism.

This controversial statement follows a sentiment that was expressed by Dem. Rep. Marcy Kaptur questioned Musk’s loyalty to America due to his immigration status.

“Mr. Musk has just been here 22 years,” Kaptur said outside the Capitol on Wednesday in a comment that received blowback from conservatives. “And he’s a citizen of three countries. I always ask myself the question, with the damage he’s doing here, when push comes to shove, which country is his loyalty to? South Africa? Canada? Or the United States? And he’s only been a citizen, I’ll say again, 22 years.”