Democrats decry Tlaib’s ‘offensive’ comments but dismiss censure votes as ‘distraction’

Democratic leaders are pushing party members to rescue fellow Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) from a pair of censure resolutions stemming from her comments related to the Israel war despite acknowledging the Michigan Democrat’s actions are “offensive” and harmful to Jewish Americans.

Tlaib faces two censure resolutions when the House reconvenes for votes on Tuesday as lawmakers from both sides of the aisle have grown increasingly frustrated with her latest comments defending a phrase often associated with Palestinian liberation. However, Democratic leaders are still urging their party to support a motion to table the matter, accusing Republicans of using the resolutions as a “distraction” from the government spending deadline next week.

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“This isn’t productive right now. We’re 10 days from a government shutdown,” Rep. Pete Aguilar (D-CA) said. “We should be talking about [annual spending bills] in addition to what the Republican plan is in the next 10 days to fund the government.”

The censure resolutions come after Tlaib posted a video online featuring pro-Palestinian protesters marching in cities across the country chanting the phrase, “From the river to the sea,” referring to the land between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan river that includes Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories. The use of that phrase prompted widespread backlash from several members of Tlaib’s own party, who pointed to the slogan’s adoption by the Hamas terrorist group to advocate the destruction of Israel.

Despite the push to save Tlaib from a condemnation on the House floor, Aguilar acknowledged that he “strenuously disagrees” with Tlaib’s use of the phrase — with other Democrats warning it could be harmful to Jewish Americans.

“I have a district that has one of the highest populations of Jewish people outside the state of Israel, and they are scared,” Democratic Caucus Vice Chairman Ted Lieu (D-CA) said. “They’re scared of rising antisemitism. When they see phrases like that, they feel scared. And we have the right to free speech in America. People can repeat their phrase every hour on the hour if they want to … I just want people to understand that when you use this phrase in the context of the brutal Hamas invasion, it scares Jewish Americans.”

However, the two party leaders said Democrats will instead remain focused on providing humanitarian relief and aid to Israel rather than further dividing the House through a series of censure resolutions.

“We want to talk about the substance of the policy of meeting those objectives, freeing hostages, defeating Hamas, and providing humanitarian relief to the Palestinian people,” Aguilar said. “That is the most important thing that we need to be talking about right now. Everything else is a distraction and a diversion.”

Tlaib has repeatedly pushed back on efforts to censure her, accusing her colleagues of taking time and effort away from “saving lives” in Gaza.

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“Many of them have shown me that Palestinian lives simply do not matter to them, but I still do not police their rhetoric or actions,” Tlaib said in a statement on Tuesday. “Rather than acknowledge the voice and perspective of the only Palestinian American in Congress, my colleagues have resorted to distorting my positions in resolutions filled with obvious lies. I have repeatedly denounced the horrific targeting and killing of civilians by Hamas and the Israeli government and have mourned the Israeli and Palestinian lives lost.”

The House is scheduled to vote on two censure resolutions against Tlaib on Tuesday introduced by Reps. Rich McCormick (R-GA) and Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA). Greene introduced a similar motion last week to condemn Tlaib, but that effort failed after several Republicans voted to table the motion, citing concerns with the bill’s language.