Mehdi Hasan. Photo: Screenshot

Some US lawmakers are rallying around conservative commentator Ryan Girdusky after CNN banned him from the network for taking a jab at anti-Israel journalist Mehdi Hasan on Monday.

Reps. Brian Mast (R-FL) and Darrell Issa (R-CA) both took to X/Twitter to defend Girdusky, praising his performance and arguing that CNN should have never platformed Hasan in the first place.

“[Hasan] spews antisemitism every day and calls Trump supporters Nazis, but God forbid anyone make a joke in his presence. He and CNN got triggered worse by a beeper than all of Hezbollah,” Mast posted. “CNN should issue an apology for rotting its viewers’ brains by having antisemitic morons like [ Hasan] on the air.”

Issa also weighed in, praising Girdusky and claiming that his presence made the program worth watching. 

“It wasn’t easy, but I watched some CNN tonight. Thought [Girdusky] brought a lot to the program,” Issa wrote.

Monday, during an episode of “CNN NewsNight,” Hasan and Girdusky got into a contentious  debate regarding Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump’s rally at Madison Square Garden on Sunday. While condemning the rhetoric shared by the speakers of the rally, Hasan compared supporters of Trump to “Nazis.”

Girdusky cautioned Hasan to tone down his rhetoric toward Trump supporters, noting that the pundit has been labeled an “antisemite” by many of his critics. Hasan responded that he’s “a supporter of the Palestinians, so [he’s] used to it.” Girdusky retorted that he hopes Hasan’s “beeper doesn’t go off,” a reference to the thousands of pagers and other communications devices used by members of the Iran-backed terrorist organization Hezbollah that exploded across Lebanon last month.

The panel discussion immediately deteriorated into chaos, and Girdusky was asked to leave the show by moderator Abby Phillips. CNN subsequently issued a statement condemning Girdusky for “racism” and vowing never to allow him on the network in the future.

Some commentators took to social media to question why CNN condemned Girdusky for making a joke about Hezbollah but not Hasan for insinuating that Trump supporters are Nazis.

Hasan, a prominent anti-Israel critic, has come under fire for having alleged ties to Qatar. Zeteo, Hasan’s new media startup, has produced an unremitting barrage of anti-Israel content, accusing the Jewish state of committing “genocide” against Palestinians.