Re: Thanedar denounces Tlaib and renounces DSA membership

[Jason MacDonald]

In article <uhmifk$2jnm$1...@dont-email.me>

Rep. Shri Thanedar (D-MI) lambasted his Michigan Democratic
colleague, Rep. Rashida Tlaib, for characterizing Hamas’ attack on
Israel as “resistance,” in an interview with Jewish Insider on
Wednesday — minutes after publicly renouncing his lifetime
membership in the Democratic Socialists of America over the group’s
stance on the Hamas attack.

“Everyone needs to unite, denouncing terrorism, as opposed to trying
to glorify it,” Thanedar told JI. “Calling this resistance is
dehumanizing. Calling this resistance is denying the suffering of
ordinary people, innocent people that had nothing to do with any of
this.”

“At a time like this, for a member of Congress to call them
militants, and resistance, as a result of whatever Israel may have
done in the past is totally insensitive,” he continued — without
specifically mentioning Tlaib by name, “and we don’t need such hate
and bigotry and antisemitism in the halls of Congress.”

The first-term lawmaker — who at one point in his Michigan
Statehouse career aligned with critics of Israel — has evolved into
a committed pro-Israel progressive since coming to Congress.

“There are no two sides to it when babies have been beheaded and
people have been murdered — civilians been murdered, kidnapped,”
Thanedar said.

He said he had not spoken to Tlaib yet about her comments, but that
if he did, he would convey a similar message in person. Thanedar did
not respond to an initial inquiry from JI about Tlaib’s statement
the day after the attack.

Tlaib told the Michigan Advance on Wednesday that she does not
support the targeted killing of Israeli or Palestinian civilians,
adding “the fact that some have suggested otherwise is offensive and
rooted in bigoted assumptions about my faith and ethnicity.” The day
before, she had ignored questions from a Fox News reporter about
whether she supported the Hamas atrocities.

Thanedar told JI that he still considers himself a progressive —
emphasizing that his policies on other issues from health care to
racial justice haven’t changed — but said he “can no longer
associate” with the DSA after it promoted a rally in Times Square at
which speakers expressed support for Hamas.

“This organization has lost it now,” he said. “I considered staying
in DSA and helping them understand this, but this is beyond
something that I can help them understand. I think this is a deep-
rooted hatred, is a deep-rooted antisemitism. And I do not want to
associate with them.”

Thanedar emphasized that he believes that the current conflict is
“not business as usual” or akin to any of the other Middle East
crises that have arisen in recent years, pointing to the massive
loss of life in Israel — the largest mass killing of Jews in one day
since the Holocaust. “We have had conversations about a two-state
solution, we’ve talked about what needs to happen, but this is not
the time to talk about that,” he said.

As the conflict moves forward, in order to maintain the strong
bipartisan support for Israel that has emerged in the immediate
aftermath of the attack, Thanedar said it will be important to
continue to emphasize that “there is nothing progressive about
defending terrorism, there is nothing socialistic about defending
terrorism.”

“We need to continue to remind our colleagues that we have Hamas as
a U.S. State Department-recognized terrorist organization,” he said.
“Progressives who understand that… we need to provide that
leadership, we need to provide that education into the progressive
fold.”

Thanedar also said that he doesn’t believe the U.S. or the world
should be “telling Israel how they should respond” to the attack,
emphasizing that it’s Israel’s right to protect itself and respond
on its own terms.

“I think we should let Israel decide how this will be dealt with so
that we don’t see these kind of atrocities again,” he said.

The Detroit congressman emphasized that he wants the Jewish
community to know that he stands with it and with Israel, and
“understand[s] the hurt and trauma that they are dealing with right
now.”

https://jewishinsider.com/2023/10/rep-shri-thanedar-rep-rashida-
tlaib/