Florida Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz called fellow Democrat Rashida Tlaib of Michigan’s claim that progressives cannot support Israel “antisemitic” in a Wednesday tweet.
Tlaib was one of five congressional Democrats to speak to American Muslims for Palestine’s Palestine Advocacy Days conference. During her speech, Tlaib claimed that people “cannot claim to hold progressive values, yet back Israel’s apartheid government.” She also asserted that the left should “push back and not accept this idea that you are progressive, except for Philistine.”
“The outrageous progressive litmus test on Israel by @RashidaTlaib is nothing short of antisemitic. Proud progressives do support Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish and democratic state. Suggesting otherwise is shameful and dangerous. Divisive rhetoric does not lead to peace,” Wasserman Schultz, the former chairwoman of the Democratic National Committee, responded.
The outrageous progressive litmus test on Israel by @RashidaTlaib is nothing short of antisemitic. Proud progressives do support Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish and democratic state. Suggesting otherwise is shameful and dangerous. Divisive rhetoric does not lead to peace.
— Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (@RepDWStweets) September 21, 2022
Tlaib has faced accusations of anti-Semitism throughout her time in Congress from both Republicans and Democrats. She and Minnesota Rep. Ilhan Omar, a fellow member of the “Squad,” attempted to visit the West Bank and Gaza with the Palestinian group Miftah, which has promoted suicide bombings and the blood libel. One of her leading fundraisers has also denied the Holocaust.
After Tlaib claimed on the House floor that Israel is an “apartheid regime,” Democratic Florida Rep. Ted Deutch responded that her comments were “consistent with those who advocate for the dismantling of the one Jewish state in the world.” He characterized that position as anti-Semitism. (RELATED: ADL Goes Dark On A Democrat’s Latest Ties To Anti-Semitism)
Left-wing Democrats frequently refer to criticism of remarks from Tlaib and Omar as “Islamophobic.” Shortly after taking office, Tlaib asserted that Islamophobia is “very present on both sides of the aisle” in Congress, according to CNN. Missouri Rep. Cori Bush complained that Omar was subject to “anti-Blackness and Islamophobia” after she compared the U.S. and Israel to Hamas and the Taliban.
