House Democrats Split Over Measure Tied to Ilhan Omar’s Comments

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Vote on resolution condemning anti-Semitism is delayed; language condemning anti-Muslim bias is added to measure

 

Rep. Ilhan Omar, center, stood with fellow Democratic Reps. Sheila Jackson Lee and Ben Ray Lujan on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C.

 

By : Natalie Andrews and 

Kristina Peterson

Updated March 6, 2019 11:17 p.m. ET

 

WASHINGTON—House Democratic leaders put on hold a vote to denounce anti-Semitism as divisions grew within the party over the response to a freshman lawmaker’s repeated criticism of U.S. policy toward Israel, the latest issue to roil the party since it gained a majority in November’s elections.

 

At issue were comments from Rep. Ilhan Omar (D., Minn.), who last week spoke of people who “push for allegiance to a foreign country,” which many listeners viewed as referring to Israel. In a closed-door meeting of Democrats on Wednesday, some lawmakers defended Ms. Omar, one of two Muslim women in Congress, and objected to party leadership moving to vote on an anti-Semitism resolution that was an implicit rebuke of her comments.

 

A draft of the resolution by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D., Calif.) and other top Democrats, reviewed by The Wall Street Journal, didn’t name Ms. Omar, but condemned “the myth of dual loyalty, including allegations that Jews should be suspected of being disloyal neighbors or citizens.”

 

Rep. Jahana Hayes of Connecticut was among the Democratic lawmakers who said in the meeting that they objected to finding out about the resolution from news reports. An aide in the room said members also were concerned about how quickly leadership moved to set the vote and noted that Ms. Omar has faced anti-Muslim animus since arriving in Congress and shouldn’t be singled out.

 

Others called Wednesday for the vote on the nonbinding resolution, saying that members coming to Ms. Omar’s defense were “trying to blur what is a clear line between historic anti-Semitic tropes and foreign policy—and we can’t let that go unchallenged,” said Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D., N.J.).

 

The fight over Ms. Omar’s comments interrupted a week when Democrats had hoped to keep the spotlight trained on their marquee bill, legislation that would change campaign-finance rules and government-ethics law while expanding voting rights. At a news conference aimed at highlighting the government-overhaul package, Democrats were instead peppered with questions about Ms. Omar.

 

Ms. Omar isn’t the only newly elected House Democrat posing challenges for Democratic leaders. Many centrist freshmen Democrats have joined Republicans on procedural votes, leading to the derailment of legislation and internal clashes with Mrs. Pelosi, who wants the party to stick together.

 

Meanwhile, Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D., Mich.) said on Wednesday she planned to introduce later this month a resolution calling on the House Judiciary Committee to investigate grounds for impeaching President Trump, a Republican. Democratic leaders have repeatedly said they want to wait for special counsel Robert Mueller to complete his investigation of Russian interference in the 2016 election and any ties between Moscow and the Trump campaign. The leaders immediately said talk of impeachment was premature.

 

Ms. Tlaib and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D., N.Y.) are members of the “Democratic Socialists of America” and their new ideas, such as the Green New Deal to combat climate change, aren’t always aligned with members of leadership, who are seeking to protect their new majority in the 2020 elections by appealing to districts in areas that Mr. Trump won in 2016.

Some Democrats have called to abolish Immigration and Customs Enforcement, spurred by the White House’s crackdown on illegal immigrants and asylum seekers. Centrists in the party don’t agree with getting rid of the agency.

 

Republicans have seized on the positions taken by some Democrats to portray the party as socialist. The Congressional Leadership Fund sees its socialism narrative as key to winning back suburban seats that Republicans lost in 2018, according to the GOP super PAC’s president, Dan Conston.

 

In response to the delayed resolution, Mr. Trump tweeted on Wednesday, “It is shameful that House Democrats won’t take a stronger stand against Anti-Semitism in their conference. Anti-Semitism has fueled atrocities throughout history and it’s inconceivable they will not act to condemn it!”

 

Democratic lawmakers criticized Mr. Trump and rejected comments from Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R., Ky.), who on Tuesday said anti-Semitic comments appeared to be becoming more “fashionable…among at least some members of the new class in the House.”

 

“There is not a rise of anti-Semitism in the House of Representatives. There’s a rise of anti-Semitic behavior and activity and violence in the country, and it’s irresponsible for Mitch McConnell to try and politicize this issue,” House Democratic Caucus Chairman Hakeem Jeffries (D., N.Y.) said Wednesday. “When has he ever said anything about the hateful remarks that continue to flow out of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue?” Mr. Jeffries added, referring to the White House and Mr. Trump.

The White House didn’t respond to a request for comment.

 

Democrats’ struggle to unite an ideologically diverse group of lawmakers mirrors clashes that Republicans faced when they held the House majority. The GOP’s conservative wing at times derailed major legislation, including the farm bill and an early version of the GOP’s unsuccessful effort to repeal the Affordable Care Act.

 

“I think right now this is reflective of the growing pains of a new majority. If it persists, it becomes much more problematic,” said Steve Israel, former chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. “In 2020, if House Democrats are running a campaign which is a referendum on themselves and not Donald Trump, it becomes a problem.”

 

The measure would be the second in the current Congress on anti-Semitism implicitly aimed at Ms. Omar. The first measure, which was passed, was added by Republicans to a bill last month after Ms. Omar, 37 years old, suggested U.S. support for Israel was fueled by money from lobbyists and campaign donations. Ms. Omar apologized for those comments.

A spokesman for Ms. Omar didn’t return a request for comment.

Mrs. Pelosi told lawmakers Wednesday to not question other members’ patriotism and encouraged them to not have their debates in the media. “If you say the bacon is not crispy enough, they’ll have an article about this unrest and unease in the Democratic Party,” she said to laughter, a leadership aide said.

 

Some Democrats said considering the anti-Semitism resolution was an unnecessary distraction when they should be focused on policy. “The American people want us to focus on economic development, investment in education, improving our infrastructure, and get beyond these resolutions that are continually dividing the Congress,” said Rep. Andre Carson (D., Ind.), one of three Muslim lawmakers. “To craft a resolution based off of Ilhan to me is unfortunate when the Congress has yet to condemn Republican members who have a history of anti-Jewish sentiment.”

 

Some Jewish Democrats objected to singling out one new member. “I’ve been dealing with anti-semitism since early grade school,” said freshman Democratic Rep. Andy Levin of Michigan. “It’s painful and it’s part of the air and water in this country like racism and Islamophobia are. I have no tolerance for it, but I will not single out a new person who is just getting here.”

Democratic leaders suggested Wednesday that they were more concerned by a rise in anti-Semitic behavior across the country since Mr. Trump was inaugurated in January 2017 and made comments labeled as racist by members of both parties.

 

Write to Natalie Andrews at Natalie.Andrews@wsj.com and Kristina Peterson at kristina.peterson@wsj.com

 

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