Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib, the only Palestinian-American in the House of Representatives, has been censured by her colleagues for “promoting false narratives,” and for her embrace of the slogan “from the river to the sea,” which is widely considered to be a rallying cry for the abolition of the State of Israel. For her part, Ms. Tlaib, who this weekend posted a video online of pro-Hamas protesters in Michigan chanting the slogan, calls it “aspirational.”The House voted 234 to 188 in favor of censure, with four members voting present. In total, 22 Democrats joined with the vast majority of their Republican colleagues to condemn Ms. Tlaib’s remarks, making her just the fourth member to be censured by the House in the 21st century. Four Republicans voted against censure. The measure to censure Ms. Tlaib was introduced by a GOP representative, Rich McCormick.Ms. Tlaib’s has come under heavy fire since Hamas’ October 7 attack on Israeli civilians for her staunch support of Palestinians and her condemnation of Israel’s counter assault on Gaza. She posted a video over the weekend accusing President Biden of supporting genocide by backing Israel. She has also accused Israel of “war crimes” and “ethnic cleansing.”Debate on the resolution to censure her grew increasingly heated on Tuesday afternoon. When Republican Congressman Mike Lawler accused Ms. Tlaib of wanting to abolish the state of Israel, Democratic Congresswoman Cori Bush yelled from the other side of the chamber,“that’s a lie!” When Ms. Bush, who like Ms. Tlaib is a member of the far left “Squad,” then took the microphone, she went over her speaking time by nearly 30 seconds, leading one Republican congressman, Warren Davidson, to yell “shut up!”Ms. Bush then started to walk toward Mr. Davidson as if to confront him before one of her Democratic colleagues spoke to her and seemed to dissuade her from moving any closer to the Ohio conservative. Non-voting Delegate Stacy Plaskett of the Virgin Islands, a Democrat who used to be a Republican, was later seen in heated conversation with Mr. Davidson at the back of the House chamber.Congressman Jamaal Bowman, another member of “The Squad,” also spoke in Ms. Tlaib’s defense. He accused Republicans of lacking racial diversity on their side of the aisle, which, he said, leads to their lack of appreciation for diversity of thought. Congressman Pat Fallon, a Republican, then screamed from across the chamber: “go pull a fire alarm!” He was referring to an embarrassing incident in September when Mr. Bowman pulled a fire alarm during a key House vote. Mr. Bowman, who claimed her did so in confusion while rushing to the vote, was later charged with a misdemeanor.One of the Republican members who voted against the censure, Congressman Ken Buck, said earlier Tuesday that the House should not continue using censure resolutions as a method of punishment. He argued that this could lead to members issuing these resolutions solely because they have policy disagreements with a colleague.“We lower ourselves when we try to take actions against someone for their words,” he said passionately. “This is the wrong time to do this. It is wrong.” He then received a standing ovation from Ms. Tlaib and other Democratic members.Other members of Congress who have been censured in just the last two years include Democrat Adam Schiff for engaging in “falsehoods, misrepresentations and abuses of sensitive information” when he led the Democratic House’s investigation of connections between President Trump and Russia; and Republican Paul Gosar for posting an anime cartoon showing him vanquishing a character meant to represent “Squad” leader Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.Some members have also been removed from committees in recent years, including Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene and Congresswoman Ilhan Omar, both for making antisemitic statements.Ms. Greene herself has in recent days sought twice to have Ms. Tlaib, whom she has referred to as “Terrorist Tlaib,” censured for participating in an “illegal occupation” of the Cannon House Office Building during a recent anti-Israel protest. Ultimately, it was her fellow Georgian, Mr. McCormick, whose censure measure made it to the floor.
