The House voted to censure Representative Rashida Tlaib of Michigan over her Israel stance last night.
The majority of Republicans voted to rebuke the sole Palestinian American in Congress. Mike Johnson, speaker of the House read the results.
Mike Johnson: “On this vote the ‘yeas’ are 234 and the ‘nays’ are 188 with 4 answering present. The resolution is adopted.”
The House condemned Tlaib for, in the words of the censure motion, “promoting false narratives” around the attack by Hamas last month.
Now, for anyone not familiar with the terminology, a censure is essentially a form of public reprimand. The Speaker of the house reads out a resolution rebuking a member for a specified misconduct. That member usually stands in the well of the House and listens to it, but the Representative did not have to.
The three-term congresswoman has long been criticized for her stance on the conflict in the Middle East and her support for Palestine.
Most recently, she came under fire for a video she posted on X that showed protesters in Michigan chanting parts of a rallying cry -”from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.”
Representative Tlaib made an emotional statement to the House before the vote.
Rashida Tlaib: “I can’t believe I have to say this, but Palestinian people are not disposable... We are human beings just like anyone else.”
The Anti-Jewish Defamation league viewed the post as an antisemitic call for the destruction of Israel, a standpoint shared by other Representatives like Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia.
Marjorie Taylor Greene: “The form of the resolution is as follows. A resolution censuring Representative Rashida Tlaib for antisemitic activity, sympathizing with terrorist organizations, and leading an insurrection at the United States Capitol complex.”
Tlaib defended herself on X and said the post represented “an aspirational call for freedom, human rights and peaceful coexistence, not death, destruction or hate.”
Rashida Tlaib: “I’m the only Palestinian American serving in Congress, Mr. Chair, and my perspective is needed here now more than ever. The idea that criticizing the government of Israel is antisemitic sets a very dangerous precedent and it’s being used to silence diverse voices speaking up for human rights across our nation.”
In a statement released the day before, Tlaib said quote “I have repeatedly denounced the horrific targeting and killing of civilians by Hamas and the Israeli government and have mourned the Israeli and Palestinian lives lost.”
Tlaib is the 26th person to ever face a censure by the Chamber, after California Representative Adam Schiff who was sanctioned in June 2023.
For Annenberg Media, I’m Thomas Legrand.