Liberty’s Natasha Cloud sparks controversy over Israeli healthcare post

New York Liberty player Natasha Cloud weighed in on the U.S. government shutdown on Tuesday, the two-year anniversary of the Oct. 7 terrorist attacks on Israel, while making false claims that American taxpayers are paying for free healthcare for Israeli citizens.

“Happy Tuesday. Our government is shut down because Republicans want to take away from healthcare for hard-working Americans. ISRAEL has free healthcare. No one pays for it except US TAXPAYERS. So what are we really talking about?” wrote to Cloud X.

Israel has its own universal healthcare system, funded by a national income tax and an income-related health tax paid by its residents. But some U.S. aid indirectly affects Israel’s health sector, primarily through smaller targeted donations of military aid and medical equipment.

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Meanwhile, Senate Democrats on Wednesday blocked a Republican bid to reopen the government for a sixth time amid mounting pressure and threats from the White House. Democrats led by Senate Minority Leader Chuck SchumerDY has fought to reopen the government on health care, especially through the blunt instrument of expiring tax credits under Obamacare, formerly known as the Affordable Care Act (ACA).

Cloud’s post sparked criticism and fact-checking on social media.

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New York Liberty guard Natasha Cloud (9) plays against the Atlanta Dream during the first quarter at Gateway Center Arena in College Park, Georgia on August 23, 2025. (Jordan Godfree/Imagn Images)

Cloud sparked controversy last year for expressing left-wing views on social media.

Cloud has made several controversial posts following the assassination of Charlie Kirk and the arrest of alleged assassin Tyler Robinson last month. Cloud even deleted an X post that sparked backlash in which he made assumptions about the political beliefs of the alleged killer’s family.

“So how did you twist this? Growing up in a good middle class family, my father was an army officer/church leader, the entire family was made up of Republicans and gun owners. [and] Trump supporters,” Cloud said in the since-deleted post.

Cloud left a few more controversial posts remaining in his feed. One post included the false claim that Robinson was a “far-right Republican.”

“Tyler Robinson and his family were Republicans. VERY RIGHT REPUBLICANS,” Cloud wrote.

Cloud also left a post on his feed that included a racially charged comment about Robinson and linked the assassination to recent threats against historically Black colleges and universities. The FBI said in a statement at the time that it was “aware of hoax threat calls” being made to HBCUs.

“So why were you threatening HBCUs when a 22-year-old white kid from Utah shot Charlie? Racism. Not politics. Racism. The difference in politics is you give tax cuts to billionaires. You’re all idiots but I digress. Your hatred of other people is not politics,” Cloud wrote.

In July, he made controversial comments about President Donald Trump and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Cloud, a strong supporter of socialist New York mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani, praised the candidate while warning Trump against sending ICE to the city.

“Mamdani, my son!” he told reporters after a New York Liberty practice.

“If Donny wants to come here, if ICE wants to try to come here, that’s fine.

“However [they’re] I’ll learn the hard way… New Yorkers don’t really fuck around. They don’t play games on each other. Don’t play games about this city.”

Cloud spoke at length about his support for socialism and his belief that Trump’s opposition was “getting through to them.”

“I think it’s the recklessness of our president, the recklessness of this administration, but it’s also exciting for us, because that’s when you know we’re going to get to them.”

In June he apparently reacted US military attacks “A sad and sad day” and “Grounds for impeachment” are written on X at Iran’s major nuclear facilities.

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New York Liberty guard Natasha Cloud (9) reacts after scoring an assist in the fourth quarter against the Atlanta Dream at Barclays Center. (Wendell Cruz/Imagn Images)

In February, Cloud responded to the President Donald Trump’s decision to eliminate various government DEI programs.

“Power systems always work as intended,” Cloud told The Associated Press. “And it’s time to tear down a system that’s only about white men.”

Cloud and the Liberty’s season ended on September 19 with their first-round elimination from the WNBA playoffs against the Phoenix Mercury.

Fox News Digital’s Alex Miller contributed to this report.

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