A resolution in the House of Representatives condemning anti-Semitism remains on hold as Democrats debate the semantics of the motion and whether other varieties of hate should be included.
Democrats are also concerned that the resolution will unfairly target Minnesota Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar, whose comments on Israel have prompted criticism from her own party, Fox News reported Wednesday.
Representative Ilhan Omar, Democrat of Minnesota, speaks during a press conference calling on Congress to cut funding for US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) … (SAUL LOEB/AFP/Getty Images)
The resolution does not cite any of Omar’s inflammatory statements on Israel but was supposed to remind Americans that anti-Semitism remains a potent prejudice around the world today even after the horrors of the Holocaust.
The statement reportedly says that the House “rejects anti-Semitism as hateful expressions of intolerance that are contradictory to the values that define the people of the United States.” (RELATED: Rep. Omar Defends Tweet Claiming ‘Israel Has Hypnotized The World,’ Says It’s Not About Religion)
The Democratic House leadership decided to generate the resolution after Omar suggested the American Israel Public Affairs Committee was buying political support and promoting “allegiance to a foreign country.”
The statement won’t be read until Thursday at the earliest, while Democrats include a cross-section of bigotry.
Maryland Democrat and House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer told Politico “The sentiment is that it ought to be broad-based. What we’re against is hate, prejudice, bigotry, white supremacy, Islamophobia, and anti-Semitism.” (RELATED: Rep. Ilhan Omar Traveled With Pro-Communist Anti-American Peace Group)
Nation of Islam Minister Louis Farrakhan frequently espouses anti-Semitic conspiracy theories on his Facebook page (Photo by Mark Wilson/Getty Images)
“Yes, we’re strongly against anti-Semitism, but we’re strongly against prejudice directed at any group,” he added.
Despite calls to remove Omar from the House Foreign Affairs Committee, the chairman of that body has rejected that suggestion.