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If you are wondering why progressive members of Congress, collectively referred to as “the squad,” have become more daring in their anti-Semitism and more aggressive in challenging Democratic leadership in recent times, look no further than the appearance of the President. House, Nancy Pelosi, on CNN this weekend. .
Pelosi was asked about the fallout from Representative Ilhan Omar’s recent equation between terrorist organizations like Hamas and the Taliban with the United States and Israel. Omar’s claim prompted Jewish Democrats in Congress to issue a statement urging Omar to clarify what she meant, even though behind the scenes many of those same members had wanted to condemn his words more harshly.
Much like she did when called upon to respond to previous anti-Semitic statements, Omar initially refused to back down and instead spoke about her identity as a black Muslim woman. In an absurd tweet, Omar said: “It’s a shame for colleagues calling me when they need my support to now issue a statement asking for ‘clarifications’ and not just calling. The Islamophobic tropes in this statement are offensive. The constant harassment and silence of the signatories of this letter is unbearable. “
Obviously, it wasn’t so unbearable that Omar’s “comms / strategy” employee couldn’t go any further with this tale of victimization. “Underlying all the backlash against @IlhanMN is the desire to maintain a world system where the mighty reigns,” they asserted, “the helpless have no recourse to justice and those who represent the helpless (a la both literally and symbolically) are silenced. “
No doubt following a phone call from Democratic leaders, Omar, still insisting that she was “taken out of context”, conceded that she “in no way equated terrorist organizations with countries. democratic “. Democratic House leaders then issued a statement saying they “welcomed the clarification” of Omar. This is the model Democrats followed in 2019 when Omar made anti-Semitic remarks and Democrats refused to condemn them outright. Instead, they passed a resolution condemning all sectarianism, actually condemning nothing at all. House Democratic leaders did not call Omar’s remarks for what they are: clear evidence of his inability to sit at least on the House Foreign Relations Committee, and evidence of his lack of continuous judgment.
Of course, even that slight non-reprimand was too much for Omar’s teammates on the squad.
Representative Rashida Tlaib said on Twitter that “there is no such thing as freedom of speech for Muslim women in Congress. The benefit of the doubt does not exist for Muslim women in Congress. Shame on Democratic House leaders for their relentless and exclusive police force of women of color in Congress. “
Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez also intervened, criticizing her fellow Democrats and saying she was “pretty sick and tired of the constant defamation, intentional misrepresentation and public targeting of @IlhanMN from our caucus. They have no idea how dangerous they are putting her by skipping private conversations and jumping to fuel targeted news cycles around her.
And Representative Cori Bush added some racial bait to the mix, saying, “I’m not surprised when Republicans attack black women for standing up for human rights. But when it comes to Democrats, it’s particularly hurtful. We are your colleagues. Talk to us directly. Enough with anti-darkness and Islamophobia. (To be fair, Bush’s Twitter feed is as confusing as most of the political notions of her fellow team members; one day she tweets, “We compromise, we die,” and the next is “We need Congress to lead with love”).
The Progressive House caucus issued its own statement accusing a “right-wing media echo chamber” for responding to Omar’s remarks and berated his colleagues for amplifying “such confrontational and bad faith tactics.” The statement unwittingly revealed that the right-wing media echo chamber may not be as soundproof or as flawed as the Progressive caucus believes if their fellow Democrats are so quick to “amplify” its message about Omar.
This is probably why Pelosi found herself backtracking on CNN on Sunday, saying of Omar,
“We did not reprimand her. We thank-[she was about to say “thanked”]- we recognized that she had clarified. Pelosi went on to say that Omar is “a valued member of our caucus” and tried to end the discussion there.
Note to Nancy and the squad: Criticizing a public official for questionable or misleading statements she has made in the course of her work is not “tone policing” or Islamophobia or racism. It is part of the job of a public servant; you must answer for your public statements.
At least Omar continues to receive a lot of coverage for his from the mainstream media. Intellectuals sympathetic to the progressive cause rushed to his defense. Former New York Times columnist Elizabeth Bruenig, now at the Atlantic, argues that “of course no one should believe” that Omar would equate the Taliban with the United States or Hamas with Israel, and describes those who handed over in question the comments as acting in bad faith.
There is, however, no “of course” in this situation. Given Omar’s track record of anti-Semitism and anti-American statements, the burden of proof should be on Omar to explain, not on the public to give her the benefit of the doubt every time she says something. arsonist or fanatic.
Bruenig assesses the situation within the framework of the internal politics of the Democratic coalition and, as such, complains that, while the Marjorie Taylor Greenes of the world roam free, “Democrats choose their only honest left-handers and pamper their darlings. right, such as Senators Joe. Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema, hoping to stop a little further to the right.
But should Democrats embrace these so-called honest left-handers? What is popular among the Squad and Bruenigs around the world is proving less acceptable to the average Democratic voter? A recent autopsy of the 2020 elections by several centrist Democratic groups revealed significant challenges posed by a progressive posture on key issues. As the National Journal reported, “The political autopsy, co-authored by Third Way, the PAC Collective and the Latino Victory Fund, suggests that largely white progressive activists pushing a left-wing agenda on the party were blind to ideological diversity within non-white communities. “
The efforts of some Democrats to move to the center are “held captive by a network of progressive activists and donors who demand ideological allegiance to political positions that are politically toxic to middle voters of all racial and ethnic backgrounds.” . Such assessments include the squad’s irrational hatred of Israel; 75% of Americans have a favorable opinion of Israel, according to the latest Gallup poll.
Maybe Pelosi should sometimes reprimand the Squad for engaging in excessive, misleading, or anti-Semitic rhetoric? As well as making her look more like a leader and less like a shill to the team, this could in part determine whether Pelosi will wield or drop his Speaker’s hammer in January 2023.
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