Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) got some bad news this week when Rep. Guy Reschenthaler (R-PN) called for her to be removed from her congressional committees because of what he describes as her “disturbing pattern of anti-Semitism,” including attending an “anti-Israel advocacy” conference.
“This week, Democrat Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib participated in a forum led by one of the nation’s most anti-Israel advocacy groups that featured other participants with reported connections to Hamas, terrorism financiers, and the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement,” Reschenthaler said in a statement.
“Rep. Tlaib’s participation in this conference, coupled with her recently deleted retweet of a slogan calling for the elimination of Israel, are just the latest examples of a deeply disturbing pattern of anti-Semitism that has been on display since she was elected,” he added. “Yet Speaker Pelosi and House Democrats refuse to condemn her heinous behavior.”
Not stopping there, Reschenthaler went on to reference the 2018 Tree of Life synagogue shooting in Pittsburgh, where eleven people were killed in what can only be described as an anti-semitic hate crime.
“As a Member of Congress representing southwestern Pennsylvania, I have seen firsthand what happens when we stand by and allow anti-Semitism and intolerance to pervade our communities,” Reschenthaler said. “In 2018, eleven Jewish worshippers were killed and six others were wounded at the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh.”
“The day after this cowardly act of violence, I stood in solidarity with Americans of all religions, races, and ethnicities at a vigil honoring the victims of this heinous crime, and the first time I ever spoke on the House floor was to denounce hatred and bigotry in all forms,” the Republican added.
Reschenthaler concluded by pointing out that Republicans were quick to denounce Rep. Steve King (R-IA) for his comments about white supremacy and white nationalism.
“House Republicans demonstrated we have zero tolerance for hateful speech in our ranks,” he said. “When outgoing Republican Congressman Steve King made inexcusable racist remarks, not only did he receive widespread condemnation from both sides of the aisle, but Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy rightfully stripped him of his committee assignments.”
Reschenthaler doubled down on his calls for Tlaib to be removed from her committees on Sunday, tweeting, “The lack of condemnation from the left regarding Rashida Tlaib’s attendance at an anti-Israel conference last week is deeply disturbing.”
This comes just one week after Tlaib tweeted, and subsequently deleted, the phrase “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.”
“The phrase ‘From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free,’ first rose to prominence as the slogan of the Palestine Liberation Organization during its founding in 1964. It refers to the notion that the land between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea should be entirely under Arab control, with a Jewish state eliminated,” the New York Post reported.
Tlaib posted this tweet for “International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People” before later deleting it.
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