The resolution in the House was passed tonight to express support for Israel, directly in response to comments made by Democratic Representative Pramila Jayapal, which she has since retracted, referring to Israel as a “racist” state.
The vote was bipartisan, with a majority of 412 to 9. 9 Democrats voted against it.
The 9 Democrats who opposed the resolution were:
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York
Rashida Tlaib of Michigan
Ilhan Omar of Minnesota
Summer Lee of Pennsylvania
Jamaal Bowman of New York
Cori Bush of Missouri
Andre Carson of Indiana
Delia Ramirez of Illinois
and Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts.
In an attempt to put Democrats in a difficult position, Majority Leader Steve Scalise tweeted before the vote, suggesting that it should be an easy decision for Democrats to either stand with their ally or yield to anti-Semitic radicals within their party.
Leading House Democrats criticized the comments made by the chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus over the weekend, where she referred to Israel as a “racist state.” In their statement on Sunday, House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, Democratic Whip Katherine Clark, Caucus Chair Pete Aguilar, and Vice Chair Ted Lieu stated that “Israel is not a racist state” without directly mentioning the progressive leader by name.
On Tuesday, Jayapal herself voted in favor of the pro-Israel resolution.
This resolution comes in the wake of Israeli President Isaac Herzog’s visit to the White House on Tuesday and his upcoming address to a joint meeting of Congress, which some progressives have announced they will not attend due to concerns about human rights. House progressives have voiced their opposition to Israeli settlements in the West Bank and US support for Israel’s Iron Dome defense system.
Jayapal, a Democrat from Washington state, made the statement that “Israel is a racist state” on Shabbos while addressing pro-Palestine protesters who disrupted a panel discussion at the Netroots Nation conference in Chicago.
“As somebody who’s been in the streets and participated in a lot of demonstrations, I want you to know that we have been fighting to make it clear that Israel is a racist state, that the Palestinian people deserve self-determination and autonomy, that the dream of a two-state solution is slipping away from us, that it does not even feel possible,” she told protesters chanting “Free Palestine.”
Jayapal sought to clarify her remarks in a Sunday afternoon statement, saying that she does “not believe the idea of Israel as a nation is racist,” while offering an apology “to those who I have hurt with my words.”
Interesting. What are the race of these 9 democrats? Don’t tell me these are the WHITE SUPREMACISTS that President Biden keeps harping about!
Who is President Biden? What is he president of?
These are individuals who scream ‘racist” whenever they see a white person.
At least they are consistent.
Better an open enemy than the smiling many that are hiding in disguise
The despicable Andre Carson is my Congressman. He and his family have been close to Louis Farrakhan for years. The community’s assimilated Jewish faux-leaders (also proud sponsors of “Pride Month”) can’t be bothered to criticize him and very likely voted for him.
No no. According to the idiots here, RFK jr. is the problem.