"History has proven the necessity of a Jewish State, and the Jewish State of Israel is a modern miracle and a source of pride, as well as a valued friend of the United States of America. And history has also shown that the Palestinian people are likewise linked forever to the land."
House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer denied the Palestinian Nakba in his statement embracing the Jewish return to their "homeland."
"Since even before its independence in 1948, Israel has sought to achieve a secure peace with its neighbors on the basis of the principle of self-determination for both the Jewish people and for the Palestinian people... The Jewish people deserve to live in peace and security in their ancestral homeland, and Palestinians deserve the opportunity to chart their own future of peace and opportunity in a land of their own."
That statement is pure myth. The U.N. partition resolution of November 1947 calling for a Jewish state and an Arab state led directly to the creation of 750,000 Palestinian refugees due in large part to Zionists' militant policies aimed at ethnically cleansing as much of the land as possible, well beyond the UN's proposed boundaries, to establish a Jewish majority in the Jewish state. Palestinians call this the Nakba, or "catastrophe." They never got the state that they were promised in that resolution.
Hoyer refused to criticize Israeli settlements and said the big problem is Palestinian "attacks" that undermine the peace process. He sanctified the special relationship between the U.S. and Israel as vital to American security: "[T]here are few alliances as critical to America's national security, to global stability, and to our Nation's values as the U.S.-Israel relationship. Israel and America share common values and together are committed to the principles of democracy and individual freedom."
Engel also denied the Nakba. Notice his focus on Jews' human rights, not Palestinians'.
"The Jews accepted [U.N. Partition resolution of 1947]. And the Palestinians, the Arabs, rejected it and tried to push Israel and the Jews into the sea. It didn't work. The war of independence happened. In 1948 Israel was declared a democracy and a nation state."
The Democratic debate was led by Engel so that Democrats could blunt the charge that Israel has become a political football.
"I would caution all Members to bear in mind that before making charges in this debate about who supports Israel and who doesn't, about who is turning this issue into a political football, there is no Member of this body who is a stronger supporter than I am of the U.S.-Israel relationship, of Israel's right to exist and defend itself."
Josh Gottheimer also sought to marginalize Israel's critics inside the Democratic Party. He said that the "lifesaving" assistance to Israel should never "be subject to politics." But Gottheimer seems to recognize he has his finger in the dike:
"This language is absolutely necessary because of the extreme and misguided views of some, especially several currently running for our Nation's highest office, who seemingly believe that assistance to Israel should be held hostage until Israel makes concessions according to their beliefs, including how Israel treats Gaza, which is controlled by the foreign terrorist organization Hamas. We must stand together in rejecting that harmful view -- as one Senator called it, the view of having leverage against Israel, our ally."
Republicans are trying to push the Democratic fracture. Here's Steve Chabot of Ohio arguing that the Democratic base is for BDS.
"What is really happening here is this resolution is meant to paper over a deep division within the Democratic Party between responsible voices who understand the importance of our relationship with Israel, and many of those are here today speaking, and a campus radical left that pushes BDS, welcomes anti-Semitic attacks on Israel, and believes that Israel is the problem while the Palestinians are just helpless victims.
"Forceful, principled Democratic leadership would take seriously their responsibility to educate the public and clear up these misbegotten notions. Instead, they have opted to cover over this serious problem with their flawed legislation today."
Rep. Lee Zeldin of New York:
"House Democrats should bring bipartisan legislation forward with teeth that will support Israel and fight the BDS movement. But rather than move forward and build on our longstanding history of bipartisan support of the U.S.-Israeli alliance, House Democrats have decided to play partisan politics with what is a powder keg."
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