House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) has launched a blistering attack against freshman Democrat Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) for her repeated use of anti-Semitic language, JNS reported.
Speaking at the annual American Israel Public Affairs Committee Policy Conference (AIPAC) in Washington, D.C., Hoyer said: “I stand with Israel, proudly and unapologetically. So when someone accuses American supporters of dual loyalty, I say: accuse me.
“What weakens us is when, instead of engaging in legitimate debate about policies, someone questions the motives of his or her fellow citizens or tries to silence others through exclusion, disenfranchisement, or fear,” he continued.
In her various antisemitic diatribes, Omar has accused American Jews of dual loyalty. Last month, the congresswoman accused AIPAC of paying members of Congress to back Israel. “It’s all about the Benjamins baby,” posted Omar in a now-deleted tweet.
“Millions of Americans, regardless of race or faith or partisan label, stand with Israel because they understand why our relationship with Israel is so important,” the congressional leader stressed.
“I am not Jewish, nor do I do represent a large Jewish constituency. But I have visited Israel fifteen times, and I have seen the courage of its people and their enduring spirit to make their country flourish,” Hoyer added.
In response to Omar’s anti-Semitic remarks and similar comments by Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.), Hoyer announced that he will lead the “largest delegation ever” of freshmen U.S. lawmakers to Israel. “They will see first-hand the threats and challenges faced by Israel and its people as well as their extraordinary courage and achievements,” the congressional leader explained.
In his speech, Hoyer also slammed the anti-Semitic Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement, calling it “a front for delegitimizing the Jewish people’s right to self-determination.” He stressed that he’s “been proud to help lead efforts in Congress to push back against the BDS movement. And I will push for a bipartisan resolution that puts Congress on record that BDS must be condemned.”
Hoyer told JNS last month that he hopes to move along a passed Senate bill that, if enacted, would impose fresh sanctions on Syria, boost security cooperation with Israel and Jordan, and allow state and local governments the right to punish state or local contractors from boycotting Israel.
“[House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman] Eliot Engel and I are talking about it, and hopefully, we’ll move something soon,” said Hoyer.
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