Three years ago, on the 14th anniversary of 9/11, Rep. Scott Taylor appeared to welcome a terrorist attack on the United States in a social media post. The congressman, while aboard a flight from Boston to Washington, posted a selfie on Instagram with a caption suggesting he would be able to stop a terrorist attempting to hijack the plane.
âFlying from #Boston to #DC on 9/11. I wish a hijacker would try!â Taylor, R-Va., wrote.
Taylor is a former Navy SEAL who reenlisted after the attacks on 9/11, when nearly 3,000 people were killed by terrorists who hijacked airliners and flew them into both towers of the World Trade Center and the Pentagon and attempted an attack on Washington before passengers overtook them — resulting in a plane crash in the Pennsylvania countryside.
Taylorâs campaign did not respond to requests for comment left Monday.
This morning, Taylor spoke at a memorial ceremony at Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek-Fort Story in Virginia Beach.
In a statement to the American Ledger, Dan Helmer, the vice chairman of VoteVets, a progressive organization that supports veteran candidates, said Taylorâs post was inappropriate.
âToday, we remember the tragic events of 9/11. We expect that our elected leaders understand this and donât make light of the awful events of that day seventeen years ago,â Helmer said.