On Tuesday night, Nov. 8, the House of Representatives voted to censure Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., the only Palestinian American in Congress, over her comments and actions in response to the war between Israel and Hamas. The censure resolution, which Republican Congressman Rich McCormick, R-Ga, authored, passed by a vote of 234 to 188.
Twenty-two Democrats voted along with most of their Republican colleagues; four Republicans opposed the measure. A simple majority is all that is needed for a censure vote to pass.
The censure resolution stems from a video posted to social media by Tlaib, which includes footage of pro-Palestinian protests in the U.S. and President Joe Biden saying he stands by Israel. The video ends with calls for Biden to support a ceasefire and said “Joe Biden supported the genocide of Palestinian people.”
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Tlaib’s post received immediate backlash from her colleagues on both sides of the aisle. Democrats, including Democrats in her home state of Michigan, calling Tlaib’s remark “hurtful” to the Jewish community, and “disturbing.”
The resolution claimed Tlaib had been “promoting false narratives regarding the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel and for calling for the destruction of the state of Israel.”
Those backing the resolution pointed to Tlaib posting a social media video of protesters chanting “from the river to the sea,” a phrase that has been used by Hamas and considered by the Anti-Defamation League and other groups as an antisemitic call for the elimination of Israel.
Tlaib has defended using the slogan, calling it “an aspirational call for freedom, human rights, and peaceful coexistence.”
Before the vote on Tuesday, Nov. 7, the congresswoman said she would not be “silenced” and accused members of the House of distorting her words.
