Voting Resources
Condemning Antisemitism
This week, the Foreign Affairs Committee considered H.R. 2374, the Peace and Tolerance in Palestinian Education Act. The bill notes that school-aged children in the West Bank and Gaza are learning from American taxpayer-funded textbooks containing materials that delegitimize Israel, denigrate Jews, and support martyrdom. It’s alarming to learn that our taxpayer dollars are unknowingly promoting this hateful propaganda.
It’s shocking enough that American taxpayer dollars are buying these textbooks, but I also used the opportunity to put lawmakers on record of where they stand on antisemitism. I introduced an amendment making it crystal clear that antisemitism, xenophobia, and claims that Israel is an apartheid state are unacceptable.
One of the members of the committee, Rep. Ilhan Omar, refused to vote on my amendment. This is no surprise, given that she repeatedly makes statements accusing Israel of being an apartheid state and claims Israel has "hypnotized the world." Her hateful rhetoric about the Jewish people and Israel has NO place in Congress, and her refusal to denounce antisemitism is telling.
