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Rep. Randy Weber (R-Tex.) was eager to show a reporter his tie. It wasn’t just a tie with an Israeli flag, a symbol of his unwavering support. He also wanted her to see the back of the tie, where a frayed label served as an indication of age.
“I didn’t order it for this occasion,” said Weber (r.), referring to the days of solidarity and mourning that followed a massive terrorist attack on Israel by the militant Hamas group. “I’ve had it for years.”
U.S. lawmakers on Capitol Hill have been eager to show their deep support for the Jewish state in this time of need in the days since Hamas killed 1,200 people and Israel declared war in response.
The groundswell of support — after a decade of tacit political tensions with Israel — is reminiscent of the rhetoric in the post-9/11 era, when it was considered taboo to deviate from sadness and anger to express concern for the lives and rights of those who might caught in the crossfire when the United States strikes back.
The Biden White House disagreed with Israel’s far-right government over settlement expansion in the West Bank, violating international law and Middle East peace goals. But that muted criticism, which – along with a growing awareness of the Palestinians’ grievances – has crept into the more progressive areas of Capitol Hill in recent years, is on the weekend after an attack so cruel that it surpasses anything else as calls for failure, almost disappearing out of revenge, almost unseemly.
In the days since Hamas militants infiltrated Israel and took 150 hostages Lawmakers from both parties left a trail of bodies and smoldering rubble and took to the airwaves to promise military aid and unwavering support. Four hundred and sixteen of 435 members of the House of Representatives have agreed to co-sponsor a resolution reaffirming the United States’ unwavering support for the Jewish State. Jewish Democrats held a vigil for Israel’s victims on the Capitol steps Thursday evening.
Lawmakers from both parties — in a Congress where pro-Israel political action committees have long been among the biggest political donors — have endorsed Jerusalem’s move Battle cries for revenge.
“As for Hamas, kill them all,” Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) told Fox News’ Sean Hannity this week. “Gaza will look like Tokyo and Berlin at the end of World War II when it is over. And if it doesn’t look like that, Israel has made a mistake.”
For some, an unspoken test has emerged in which one’s support for Israel is measured not only by expressions of sympathy and political support, but also by the extent to which each legislator is willing to give Israel the green light to do whatever it wants Gaza is necessary.
“I want this administration to get out of Israel’s way and let Israel do what it does best,” Rep. Max L. Miller (R-Ohio) said Wednesday, saying he advocates for… no rules of engagement .
The Israel Defense Forces are preparing for a potential Ground attack on Gaza in the coming days.
“Level the place,” Graham said on Fox, declaring the war between Israel and Hamas a “religious one.”
Human rights activists have warned that the scale of civilian casualties could increase if there is a ground invasion of the dense and impoverished area of two million people.
Blinken arrives in Israel as Gaza’s humanitarian crisis worsens
Days of Israeli bombing since the Hamas attack have killed about 1,400 Palestinian civilians, including hundreds of children, in the Gaza Strip, an area about half the size of New York City. The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and the European Union’s foreign policy chief have warned against this Israel’s siege announced earlier this week to cut off Gaza’s access to food, water, fuel and electricity could violate international law.
“I think we need to make sure that we don’t respond in a way that prevents us from ever having peace,” Progressive Caucus Chairwoman Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) told reporters this week after a closed press conference on Israel. Jayapal, who received strong backlash in July, including from members of her own party, when she called Israel a “racist” state, appeared to weigh her words carefully.
“I think it’s just complicated at the moment. It’s hard to say in this environment. It’s difficult for people to feel,” she added.
Amid the furor on Capitol Hill, there was barely an unsolicited mention of Palestinian deaths. Civilian casualties are inevitable in an area as densely populated as Gaza, many say; A problem made even more complex by Hamas’ hostage-taking and Israel’s complete closure of the enclave’s borders, preventing Palestinian civilians from fleeing.
“We use the words ‘scalable’ and ‘proportionate,’ but ultimately how do you measure proportion when 1,200 Israelis have been murdered?” said Rep. Don Bacon (R-Neb.) “I think Israel will always seek military objectives. But if they build military targets into the population, there will be casualties.”
Some have attempted to portray human rights concerns in Gaza as anti-Semitic.
Miller, who served as an adviser to former President Donald Trump and identified himself as one of two Jewish Republicans in the House, said it was “disgusting” that “people are already calling for a ceasefire before they’ve even gotten to their ceasefire.” “insulting.” He called the United Nations – which has called for the protection of civilians – an “anti-Semitic organization” and described Israel’s opponents as “savages” who are “rising up.” [their] Children to kill Jews.”
Miller, speaking to reporters this week alongside Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Tex.), chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, cited unfounded statements Claims of atrocities to justify the need for a ruthless attack on the Palestinian enclave.
“I saw a video of small children in cages – like animals. … When Hamas laughed at them,” McCaul told reporters, apparently referring to a video made by Israeli fact-checkers was actually posted on TikTok before the attack.
“What worries me is … that the narrative will shift to somehow Israel being the tyrant here and Hamas being the victim,” McCaul told reporters on Wednesday.
The resolution introduced by McCaul and New York in support of Israel Rep. Gregory W. Meeks, the top Democrat on the Foreign Affairs Committee, blamed Hamas directly “for the deaths of hundreds of Palestinians” since the attack.
“We will remain side by side with the Israelis,” said California Democrat Ami Bera.
“It is also clear that there could be a huge humanitarian crisis – water, food and energy will be cut off to Gaza,” he added. “What happens in two weeks when medicine runs out or people start starving?”
President Biden stopped short of publicly calling for Israeli restraint this week, but he alluded to his conversation with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in which he urged him to abide by international law.
“Terrorists are specifically targeting and killing civilians,” Biden said. “We uphold the laws of war. It is important. There is a difference.”
Rep. Jason Crow (D-Colo.), a former Army Ranger who was deployed to both Iraq and Afghanistan, said Thursday that the “saber-rattling rhetoric” of some lawmakers on the Hill was “extremely unhelpful,” which The Competition of Rhetoric characterizes aggression as something that “serves their political means” rather than advancing a secure Middle East.
“Israelis have a right to respond. “I firmly believe that Hamas must be neutralized,” Crow said. But urban warfare, like what Israeli forces will experience in Gaza, is brutal and difficult, he added.
“I think one of the lessons we’ve learned during our 20-year war on terror is that you have to go to great lengths to minimize harm to civilians,” Crow said. “If you don’t do this, not only will you lose sight of your goals and your humanity, but it will also be counterproductive. By overreacting, you create more enemies and adversaries.”