Republican Rep. Lee Zeldin of New York tweeted out an anti-Semitic voicemail left on his office phone Thursday afternoon. He tagged Democratic Congresswoman Ilhan Omar in the tweet, as the two of them have recently fought over their views on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
The caller said in part:
Everybody’s anti-Semitic when it comes to talking about you people who have murdered black people, systematically enslaved them. You’re occupying the Palestinian region. You’re worse than Hitler. You maggots and bloodsuckers. Get the hell out of Israel and take your ass on back to Europe. I get sick of you calling people anti-Semitic when they’re not. I’m calling you a hater of the Palestinians. You stop murdering them and maybe people will look at you like you’re decent people. Right now you’re nothing but animals. You know Hitler told you that right? You got my phone number, you got my zip code. You come after me if you want. I don’t give a fuck cause I hate you people for what you did to us as black people and I wish Hitler would have done his fucking job.
“We got calls like this all day long today and many were worse than what was in that voicemail. I went through K-12, college, law school, and 4 years on active duty in the Army and I never once experienced anti-Semitism,” Congressman Zeldin told The Daily Caller. “In the last several years though this anti-Israel, anti-Semitic hatred is only increasing in American politics, on college campuses, and in the halls of Congress.”
Rep. Lee Zeldin (R-NY) leads at a news conference with 10 other Republican members of Congress announcing their introduction of a U.S. House resolution alleging misconduct in the Department of Justice and Federal Bureau of Investigation and requesting the appointment of a second special counsel to investigate the law enforcement probes into the 2016 U.S. presidential campaign at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, U.S., May 22, 2018. REUTERS/Leah Millis
“That’s why I’m calling on the House to immediately pass my resolution condemning this anti-Israel, anti-Semitic hate,” he continued. “Let’s not elevate it. Let’s not empower or echo it. Let’s eliminate it.”
This new VM just came into my office. @IlhanMN, this is just another day in my world as an American Jew in Congress. Would love to know what part of this hate filled, anti-Semitic rant you disagree with? I disagree with all of it. Do you? pic.twitter.com/4WoJqiATCf
— Lee Zeldin (@RepLeeZeldin) January 31, 2019
Earlier this month, Zeldin was among three Republicans who formally introduced a resolution to condemn the rise of anti-Semitism and anti-Israel sentiment in the U.S. It specifically called out Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan, the leaders of the Women’s March — who support Farrakhan and have reportedly peddled anti-Semitic conspiracy theories — as well as Democratic Reps. Rashida Tlaib and Omar. (RELATED: Rep. Omar: ‘I Almost Chuckle’ When Israel Is Called ‘A Democracy’)
Zeldin pushed House Democrats to schedule a vote while speaking on the floor of the House on Tuesday.
Also on Tuesday, Zeldin started the feud on Twitter. He tweeted that it’s “crazy” Omar was placed on the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations.
Was just selected as Ranking Member of the @HouseForeign Subcommittee on Oversight & Investigations! Just learned Freshman Rep. Ilhan Omar was also put on this committee w oversight of US foreign policy. Crazy to watch what House Dems are empowering/elevating.
— Lee Zeldin (@RepLeeZeldin) January 29, 2019
She responded to that by saying that he’s not used to “Muslim women as colleagues who know how to stand up to bullies!”
The two of them continued to fire insulting tweets back and forth, which is what led Zeldin to tagging Omar in his tweet about the voicemail.
Omar responded to that tweet, saying, “This is heinous and hateful. I too am flooded with bigoted voicemails and calls every day. Maybe we could meet and share notes on how to fight religious discrimination of all kinds? Maybe over Somali tea, in your old office which I happen to be in now.”
