By Matt Brooks
WASHINGTON, DC – The Republican Jewish Coalition released the following statement slamming Senate Democrats and Rand Paul for maneuvering to kill the Antisemitism Awareness Act, the Jewish community’s top priority for the 119th Congress.
This setback vividly illustrates that the Chuck Schumer-led Senate Democrats are increasingly unreliable, or worse, in defending Jewish Americans. It also shows, as I warned this week in Israel, that there is a real cost to the influence of the anti-Israel right in the GOP.
Led by the most anti-Israel Senator, Bernie Sanders, all 11 Democrats on the Senate Education Committee voted for an amendment to the bill that consists of a litany of vicious, anti-Israel attacks – most of them clearly based on Hamas propaganda.
This dishonorable vote served to advance a “poison pill” strategy to kill the Antisemitism Awareness Act. The shameful gambit could not have succeeded without the assistance of one Republican: Rand Paul.
As the Jewish community continues to face unprecedented levels of antisemitism, these US Senators chose to align with a collection of wildly anti-Israel organizations like J Street, CAIR, and Code Pink against the Jewish community’s top legislative priority:
Bernie Sanders (D – VT)
Rand Paul (R – KY)
Patty Murray (D – WA)
Chris Murphy (D – CT)
Maggie Hassan (D – NH)
Ed Markey (D – MA)
Lisa Blunt Rochester (D – DE)
Tammy Baldwin (D – WI)
Tim Kaine (D – VA)
John Hickenlooper (D – CO)
Andy Kim (D – NJ)
Angela Alsobrooks (D – MD)
RJC has strongly supported the Antisemitism Awareness Act since it was first introduced in 2016. Despite the current difficulties, we remain strongly committed to securing enactment of the bill during the 119th Congress.
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Matt Brooks is CEO of the Republican Jewish Coalition.