Trying to pass laws to defend protesters’ rights is a lonely battle on Capitol Hill.
Seventy-five House Democrats voted on Monday in support of a resolution that praised President Donald Trump’s deportation regime.
The vote came as Trump deployed more than 1,700 National Guard members and 700 Marines to Los Angeles to crush protests against increased U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids and mass arrests.
Sponsored by Rep. Gabe Evans, R-Colo., a pro-Israel Republican, the bulk of the resolution was dedicated to condemning the attack last month in Boulder, Colorado, against pro-Israel demonstrators calling for the release of hostages in Israel. Tucked into the text was a line praising ICE, expressing “gratitude to law enforcement officers, including U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement personnel, for protecting the homeland.”
While some Democrats are busy joining Republican colleagues to praise ICE, Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., is seeking to pass a law that holds police accountable for violence against protesters. Her bill, introduced in late May, would apply penalties to law enforcement for using force in response to a demonstration.
This is a transparent, well-worn DC play. Put Democrats in a political box by forcing them to choose between voting against an antisemitism resolution so Republicans can slam them as being antisemitic and anti-Israel — or voting for the resolution, so they can hit the Party for being divided and chaotic.
Seems like this article is trying to do the latter.
I wish these tactics didn’t work but this is how the GOP got control of our country.
raising money by calling donors is most of a congressman's job. AIPAC rolling up and saying they can skip that hassle must be a pretty compelling offer.
Also, if they all collectively called it out, call it the "Pro-ICE Bill" or "Pro-kidnapping Bill" or whatever. Make the vote about that. Call the Republican who sponsored the Bill a coward for trying to do it, and a fool for thinking it would work.
"Why did you vote against the Bill condemning attacks on Pro-Israel protesters?"
"I didn't. I voted against a bill that supported the mass deportations and unconstitutional actions made by ICE, which we are absolutely against because we support due process. The bill was a cowardly and foolish attempt to get us to support this despicable practice by pretending it's about something else, but we're not fools or cowards ourselves, so we won't fall for it."
What the dem congressman as a group and individually risk is campaign contributions from AIPAC. This has always been about bribes from foreign lobbyists. They arent trapped in any box they dont want to be in. ITs like saying your cat is trapped in a box. They love that box.
I'm not even sure what "democrat" means anymore. They havent really had a cohesive platform since Obama. Its just some vague "left of whatever republicans say" sort of hand waving that they often dont even bother to follow through on.
Mad respect to Ilhan Omar for consistently refusing to cower away from what she believes. I can't even imagine the threats she must deal with on a daily basis
I think you misspellt "the paid opposition" which is really all anyone can justifiably call the Democrats given their recent behaviour and decisions, and there's no sign of learning or changing tactics cause they're paid no to by the same investors that paid the other fucking side. Capital is the enemy here, it has no allegiance but to itself, and it has wrestled the political body away from the voting public, due in no small part to class turncoats in government lobbying in the open. There is no room for partisans if any remnant of America as we know it is to be saved, anyone picking sides has chosen the wrong one already, there's only the side of the people.
First past the post is objectively the worst voting system. It's worse than dictatorship because, at least in a dictatorship, 100% of the voters get 100% of the outcomes they chose.
As long as we used FPTP we're guaranteed to get a clusterfuck and always the lesser of two evils.