Rep. Rashida Tlaib has spoken about how ‘proud’ she is to have voted against Joe Biden in today’s Democratic primary in Michigan in protest at the President’s stance on the Israel-Gaza conflict.
The Democrat representative spoke today on video for the Listen To Michigan Campaign X account. The group was set up to encourage Democrats to vote for the ‘uncommitted’ option on the ballot in Michigan to signal their dissatisfaction with Biden’s refusal to call for a ceasefire in the conflict, as well as the additional funds Congress has pledged to the Israeli war effort.
“I was proud today to walk in and pull a Democratic ballot and vote uncommitted. We must protect our democracy. We must make sure our government is about us, about the people. When 74% of Democrats in Michigan support a ceasefire, yet President Biden isn’t hearing us, this is a way we can use our democracy to say, ‘Listen … No more using our dollars to fund a genocide. No more,'” Tlaib said in the video.
A statement from @RashidaTlaib on voting uncommitted in Michigan today. pic.twitter.com/xOfOcYTFQn
— #ListenToMichigan (@Listen2michigan) February 27, 2024
The Congresswoman, whose parents are both immigrants from Palestine, has thrown her weight behind the campaign to highlight what she claims is overwhelming support from Michigan Democrats for a ceasefire in the region. According to their website, Listen To Michigan wants to “… convey a firm message of our persistent demand for ceasefire and an end to financing Israel’s war crimes and genocide in Gaza.”
Tlaib is a member of the so-called ‘Squad‘ of younger, hard-left Democrat Representatives — including Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Ilhan Omar — as well as being affiliated with The Democratic Socialists of America. She has consistently spoken in defense of the Palestinians in Congress and voted against measures to fund Israeli defense, including The Iron Dome Defense System in 2021. (RELATED: Rashida Tlaib’s Ties To Anti-Semitism Run Deeper Than Previously Known)
She was censured in Congress in Nov. 2023 for defending the chant ‘From The River to the Sea’, The Guardian reported. The chant is regarded as a call for a Palestinian nation from the River Jordan to the Mediterranean Sea, and is viewed by many including The Anti-Defamation League as a call for the destruction of Israel.
Editor’s note: This article has been updated to accurately indicate Rep. Rashida Tlaib’s political office.