Israel war: Congressional leadership hit pro-Palestinian rhetoric of members of Congress

Congressional leaders spoke at a massive pro-Israel rally in Washington, D.C., and hit the sentiment of some pro-Palestinian members of Congress.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) appeared onstage and addressed the crowd. So did House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) and Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA). At one point, the typical rivals joined hands in a show of bipartisan support for the United States’s Middle Eastern ally.

BIDEN-XI MEETING HAS REPERCUSSIONS AT HOME AHEAD OF ELECTION: ‘THE US HAS ENOUGH ON ITS PLATE’

In their addresses to the crowd, the congressional leaders made not-so-subtle jabs at the handful of pro-Palestinian members of Congress, denouncing rhetoric used by them, which the leaders decried as pro-Hamas.

Manuel Balce Ceneta/AP

“When Hamas says ‘from the river to the sea,’ they mean all the present-day Israel should be a Jewish-free land,” Schumer said, referring to a controversial chant that had been defended by Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI). “We stand with you, and we will not rest until you get all the assistance you need.”

Johnson backed up Schumer’s denunciation, describing the chant as a “Hamas rallying cry.”

“We’ve heard many echoes of Hamas’s rallying cry ‘from the river to the sea,’ and I’m convinced that a lot of these college students who are engaging in these protests do not understand that is an explicit call for the extermination of Israel,” Johnson said. “It is unacceptable for any political leader in this nation to give credence to this dangerous rhetoric.”

He then took aim at another focus of pro-Palestinian members of Congress, a ceasefire in Gaza, which he called “outrageous.”

“Israel will cease their counteroffensive when Hamas ceases to be a threat to the Jewish state,” Johnson added to cheers from the crowd.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER

Rep. Cory Mills (R-FL) also attended and expressed his support in a video sent to the Washington Examiner.

“As you can see, many people are ready to continue to look at the defense of the Israeli state,” he said. “We stand with Israel against the terrorist organization Hamas. God bless you. God bless the Jewish state. God bless the United States of America.”