House Democrats defend 'no' vote on resolution condemning antisemitism
FOX Business correspondent Hillary Vaughn asks House Democrats who voted against a resolution to condemn antisemitism on college campuses to explain their vote.
Nearly two dozen Democrats and one Republican voted against a House resolution condemning support for Hamas, Hezbollah and "other terrorist organizations" at U.S. colleges — and several of the Democrats defended their vote when questioned by FOX News.
The resolution, drafted by Rep. Burgess Owens, R-Utah, attested such demonstrations created a hostile environment for Jewish students, recognized the Oct. 7 Hamas attack, and laid out how Hamas' long-stated goal is the "entire destruction" of the Jewish State.
When asked by FOX Business correspondent Hillary Vaughn, "no" vote Rep. Maxwell Frost, D-Fla., rejected the notion he hasn't condemned antisemitism, saying he is one of the "most vocal people" on that front.
"[T]here's lies in the resolution, and right now, there's lies everywhere on all sides of this," Frost said, adding he previously decided one week prior to vote against "anything that contains lies" because that would harm "both Jewish and Arab and Muslim students alike."
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Rep. Summer Lee, D-Pa., responded similarly to a question about her no vote, saying she condemns antisemitism "every single day."
"So why not vote for the bill?" Vaughn countered. Lee gave the same general response multiple times thereafter.
In her case, Lee's vote against an Oct. 25 bill attesting the House "stands with Israel as it defends itself" raised the ire of Jewish leaders in her Pittsburgh district.
More than 30 religious figures in the Steel City wrote an open letter expressing "frustration and anger" over her vote, according to WESA-NPR.
Some of the other "no" votes included "Squad" members like Reps. Jamaal Bowman of New York and Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts, as well as several urban-district Democrats including Jesus Garcia of Chicago, Andre Carson of Indianapolis and Maxine Waters of Los Angeles.
Reps. Earl Blumenauer, D-Ore., and Bonnie Watson Coleman, D-N.J., also voted "no," according to the Clerk of the House's roll call.
When confronted over his "no" vote, Bowman responded more pointedly, asking Vaughn, "What are you talking about? I've done that [condemned antisemitism] a million times."
Bowman said he disagreed with the resolution itself and that his no vote was lodged irrespective of his continued fight against "hate in all its forms."
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In another back-and-forth, Pressley responded she's condemned "antisemitism and Islamophobia and hate in all its forms repeatedly."
Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., was the lone Republican no vote. He raised constitutional free-speech concerns about the document in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Owens' resolution also stated many colleges and universities have failed to "speak out clearly" against Hamas and "exposed their lack of regard for their Jewish and pro-Israel students" — and that "glorify[ing] violence and antisemitic rhetoric" has created a hostile environment.
Carson, another one of the lawmakers who voted "no," was recently accused by the Anti-Defamation League's Jonathan Greenblatt of trying to "intimidate" fellow Democrat Josh Gottheimer of New Jersey, who is Jewish.
Gottheimer had previously criticized "despicable" lawmakers who did not vote to "condemn Hamas terrorists," leading Carson to call him "very emotional" and a "coward and a punk."
Watson Coleman said in a statement Friday that the resolution she voted against doesn't meet the "standard" of a "serious and measured approach to combat" antisemitism on campus, a situation she called "appalling."
On "America Reports," Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., was asked about fellow Democrats who voted "no" on Owens' resolution as well as those calling for a ceasefire on the part of Israel against Gaza.
Khanna highlighted his "yes" vote and noted Massie's objection on free-speech grounds, saying while he disagrees with that position, he believes some of the Democrats who opposed it also did so from that point of view rather than any permissiveness of antisemitism.
FOX News' Hillary Vaughn and Jeffrey Clark contributed to this report.
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