The Republican-controlled U.S. House voted 222-186 on Wednesday evening to table a resolution to censure Democratic Rep. Rashida Tlaib of Michigan in relation to her criticism of Israel, a U.S. ally.
At least 23 House Republicans joined all Democrats in voting in favor of tabling the measure, including Michigan Reps. Tim Walberg of Tipton, Bill Huizenga of Holland and John Moolenaar of Caledonia. The vote sets aside the measure, effectively killing it for now.
Walberg, Michigan’s most senior Republican in Congress, said Wednesday that while he “strongly” disagrees with her criticism of Israel in its war with Hamas, he defends Tlaib’s First Amendment right to free speech.
Walberg said he’d spoken directly with Tlaib, listened back to her recent remarks at pro-Palestinian rallies and is “resolute” in his opposition to the resolution to censure her brought by Georgia GOP Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene.
“While I disagree with her statements at the rallies, she has a right to make those statements,” Walberg told The Detroit News. “And so on the issue of the First Amendment, I cannot support a censorship of Rashida. That’s where I’ve been, and I’ll continue to be.”
As a “privileged” measure, the censure resolution came up under a fast-tracked process that skips committee and must be considered on the floor within two legislative days. It would not have affected Tlaib’s committee assignments.
“Rashida and I are friends, I care for her. I worry about her grandmother in the West Bank,” said Walberg, dean of Michigan’s House delegation. “I know that she’s a Palestinian American. I know that she’s had the framework all her life that Israel is taking up the land that they rightfully should have. I get that. … But this is a First Amendment issue.”
Walberg made a comparison to former President Donald Trump and the Republicans, including Walberg, who reject the idea that Trump by his words brought about the “so-called insurrection” on Jan. 6, 2021.
“How can I say to Rashida — who stands up and speaks strongly at a rally calling for a cease-fire and attacking Israel and all of that — how can I take any other position than, ‘Rashida, I don’t agree with you, but I’ll defend your First Amendment rights’?” Walberg said.
The eight-term congressman added that he urged Tlaib to “tone things down” and that he wished she’d retract her statements accusing Israel of bombing a hospital in Gaza in conflict with U.S. intelligence assessments.
Huizenga also said he “wholeheartedly” rejects what Tlaib said regarding the terror attack on Israel. “However, we cannot pick and choose when the constitutional protections of the First Amendment apply,” he said. “Rep. Tlaib is wrong and what she said is vile, but the First Amendment permits her to be.”
Greene argued Wednesday that the matter regarding Tlaib “extends far beyond” freedom of speech.
“Our censure ability in Congress is our freedom of speech to say Rashida Tlaib’s words and actions are not something that we approve of,” Greene said in a video posted to X, formerly Twitter. “This is something every Republican member of congress and Democrats should be voting for.”
House Democratic leaders were urging their members to vote against the Tlaib censure, calling the measure “extreme, disingenuous and clearly partisan policy,” noting that it claims that Tlaib “led an insurrection” at the U.S. Capitol complex and that she “followed Hezbollah’s orders.”
“This disingenuous attempt to censure @RepRashida is a blatant attack on freedom of speech & expression,” Rep. Debbie Dingell, D-Ann Arbor, tweeted. “As the only Palestinian American & one of few Muslim members of Congress, her voice matters. I call on my House colleagues to reject this shameful & political resolution.”
The daughter of Palestinian immigrants, Tlaib is one of two Muslim women in Congress. Greene’s resolution accuses Tlaib of “antisemitic activity” and “sympathizing with terrorist organizations.”
The claim that Tlaib led an “insurrection” at the U.S. Capitol Complex on Oct. 18 is a reference to a protest inside and outside the Cannon House Office Building by members of the advocacy group Jewish Voices for Peace.
Tlaib was not present for the demonstration, but spoke to a rally nearby calling for a cease-fire in the Israel-Hamas war, according to her office. Walberg said he confirmed this when he spoke with Tlaib last week.
“I needed to find out whether she had entered a federal building — i.e. Cannon House Office Building — with that demonstration, which is illegal. It violates the law,” Walberg said. “If she had done that, if she’d gone in that building, I would have had to vote to censure. But she didn’t.”
Tlaib responded to Greene’s measure last week with a statement calling the resolution “unhinged” and “deeply Islamophobic,” saying it “attacks peaceful Jewish anti-war advocates.”
“I am proud to stand in solidarity with Jewish peace advocates calling for a ceasefire and an end to the violence. I will not be bullied, I will not be dehumanized, and I will not be silenced,” Tlaib said in the statement.
“I will continue to call for ceasefire, for the immediate delivery of humanitarian aid, for the release of hostages and those arbitrarily detained, and for every American to be brought home. I will continue to work for a just and lasting peace that upholds the human rights and dignity of all people, and ensures that no person, no child has to suffer or live in fear of violence.”
Tlaib is an outspoken critic of Israel who opposes U.S. military aid for the country. She faced blowback from both sides of the aisle for her response to the Israel-Hamas War, in part for not sufficiently condemning Hamas in the wake of the Oct. 7 terror attack. She and several colleagues introduced a House resolution calling for a ceasefire.
Tlaib has also spoken out against the White House, saying the Biden administration has permitted Israel to retaliate against Hamas in a way that’s endangered the lives of millions of Palestinian civilians living in Gaza.
“President Biden, not all of America is with you on this one and you need to wake up and understand that,” Tlaib said at a pro-Palestinian rally. “I’m not going to forget this.”
Tlaib voted no last week on a resolution in support of Israel, saying that she condemns the killing and targeting of civilians and that it’s “a war crime, no matter who does it.”
“Do not confuse my vote against this one-sided resolution with a lack of empathy for all those who are grieving. I voted against this resolution because it is a deeply incomplete and biased account of what is happening in Israel and Palestine, and what has been happening for decades,” Tlaib said in a statement.
“This resolution rightly mourns the thousands of Israeli civilians killed and wounded in the horrific attacks but explicitly does not mourn the thousands of Palestinian civilians, including over 2,000 children, killed and wounded in the collective punishment of Palestine.”
Had the Tlaib measure moved forward, House Democrats were expected to force a vote on a reciprocal resolution by Vermont Rep. Becca Balint to censure Greene for a history of “racism, antisemitism, LGBTQ hate speech, Islamophobia, anti-Asian hate, xenophobia, and other forms of hatred.”
Balint’s measure cites examples of comments by Greene including referring to Asian Americans as ‘‘yellow people,’’ saying Black people are “slaves to the Democratic Party,” and claiming mass school shootings were false flags or staged.
Greene compared the House’s mask mandate to sending Jews to the gas chamber and said wildfires were caused by Jewish space lasers. The measure also notes that Greene has “downplayed” the actions of Jan. 6, 2021 rioters at the U.S. Capitol and said that had she organized the Jan. 6 attack ‘‘we would have won. Not to mention, it would’ve been armed.”
Democratic Rep. Haley Stevens, D-Birmingham, said Greene’s resolution was “more divisive tomfoolery” after House Republicans wasted nearly a month trying to elect a speaker.“My stance is clear, I support Israel in their fight against Hamas. The motion to censure my colleague from Michigan — with whom I dramatically differ regarding Israel — contains falsehoods and was drafted by an unserious legislator with a history of Islamophobia and antisemitism,” Stevens said in a statement referencing Tlaib.“This is another distraction when Congress needs to be working to pass our federal budget and provide funding for our allies and partners fighting against terrorism and autocracy,” Stevens added.
The U.S. House last censured a member in July — U.S. Rep. Adam Schiff, D-California, who led the first impeachment prosecution of former President Donald Trump.
The House on Wednesday also defeated a resolution to expel embattled GOP Rep. George Santos of New York, which needed get two-thirds vote in order to pass.
The vote was 179-213, with 19 lawmakers voting present. U.S. Rep. John James, R-Shelby Township, was among 24 Republicans in favor of expelling Santos, while Tlaib and U.S. Rep. Elissa Slotkin, D-Holly, voted were among 31 Democrats voting no.
Santos faces a federal indictment accusing him of fraud and conspiracy and has pleaded not guilty.
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