Ro Khanna set off a fresh wave of criticism after tying unrest in France to wealth inequality and urging younger Americans to be heard. The remarks, and the backlash that followed, turned into a sharp fight over whether he was calling attention to a real economic problem or soft-pedaling political violence.
Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., is facing heat from conservatives and even some voices on the left after posting about the riots in France. His message framed the chaos as a sign of deep frustration among young people and a warning about what happens when power and wealth pile up in too few hands.
“This is what happens when the nations let wealth and power accumulate in the hands of a few,” Khanna wrote in a post to X on .
The backlash came fast because the post landed after demonstrations over living costs and public services spiraled into vandalism, looting, and arson in several French cities. Critics argued that whatever the underlying grievances, the destruction could not be dressed up as some kind of noble civic outcry.
Spencer Pratt, the former Los Angeles mayoral candidate and political commentator, blasted Khanna for what he saw as a flattering take on violent unrest. He accused the congressman of pretending the riots were some sort of righteous demand instead of a wave of destruction hitting ordinary people and businesses.
https://x.com/RoKhanna/status/2111982959276478703
“Of course Rohit Conman sees mass communist riots destroying businesses and historic buildings in Paris and lies about it as some noble ‘ask’ for justice,” Pratt wrote.
“These commies lie as easily as they breathe.”
Shannon Watts, a Democratic gun activist who has also taken aim at the far left, pushed back as well. She argued that members of Congress cannot condemn political violence in one context and then excuse it in another when the crowd happens to match their political sympathies.
“If you’re a member of Congress who condemned the January 6 insurrection, you don’t get to excuse riots in France as a ‘cry for help.’ Political violence doesn’t become acceptable just because you sympathize with people committing it,” Watts wrote in a post .
Jonathan Turley, a political commentator and legal analyst, also took Khanna to task, saying the congressman has long tried to tap into anger for political gain. He said Khanna seemed eager to connect himself to the same kind of unrest he was warning others about.
“Ro Khanna has long sought to ride the rage wave to power,” Jonathan Turley, a political commentator and legal analyst,
Turley added that France’s turmoil should be a warning, not a banner to wave. He pointed to the country’s revolutionary history and suggested that establishment figures who flirt with mob anger often end up regretting it.
“Khanna could indeed learn much from France. This is history repeating itself. That history, by the way, does not bode well for establishment figures who pander to the mob,” Turley added, giving a nod to the infamous French Revolution that targeted the country’s political and financial elite in a bloody crusade.
The unrest in France had already turned ugly by the time Khanna weighed in. Authorities reported nearly 2,400 arrests nationwide by Sunday evening, along with hundreds of injured officers, serious damage in multiple cities, and one protester who died after suffering cardiac arrest during demonstrations in Paris.
In Limoges, a fire that officials said was deliberately set at city hall caused major damage to the historic building. Shops were looted in Paris, Bordeaux, Marseille, Lyon, and elsewhere, while public buildings were vandalized or targeted by flames.
Khanna argued that the anger behind the protests should be a wake-up call for American lawmakers, especially when it comes to young voters who feel locked out of the future. He said the real issue is not just street disorder, but the sense of hopelessness that can build when people believe the system only works for the wealthy.
“This is what happens when young people lose hope in their future. In America, let us listen to our young. We need an economic and political transformation. America’s Next New Deal,” Khanna wrote.
“From the high schools of France to the streets of Madrid to the universities of Tirana, young people are telling their governments the same thing: in an age of massive wealth inequality, they want a future they can believe in,” Khanna wrote.
After the criticism piled up, Khanna tried to sharpen his message and distance himself from the violence itself. He said he condemned vandalism and insisted that nonviolent protest remains central to his political outlook.
“I unequivocally condemn violence and vandalism. I have always championed my grandfather’s example of non-violent protest,” Khanna wrote, referencing his relative, Amarnath Vidyalankar, who was imprisoned for advocating for India’s independence in the early 1930s.
“Let us not be blind to the anger young people have against the unholy alliance of wealth and power. The billionaires buying politicians. The corruption,” Khanna added.
Even that did not cool the argument. Former Rep. George Santos, R-N.Y., jumped in and mocked the congressman’s framing, while Khanna shot back by asking whether the real lesson should be to confront inequality and hopelessness instead of just condemning the people expressing that anger.
“These are not mere students… my friend, I regret to inform you, this is an invasion,” Santos wrote, France’s high intake of refugees in recent years.
Khanna, responding to Santos, doubled down on his view.
“George, is the lesson not to tackle the vast disparity here and young people’s hopelessness?” he asked.
Khanna’s office did not immediately respond to requests for comment from Fox News Digital.
