After two weeks of ridiculously attempting to negotiate with pro-Hamas, anti-Israel demonstration organizers, Columbia University on Tuesday finally gave the NYPD the go-ahead to clear the campus, including the Hamilton Hall administration building.
Meanwhile, “total anarchy” reigned at the UCLA demonstration encampment, finally prompting the Los Angeles Police Department and California Highway Patrol to arrive on campus early Wednesday morning to attempt to restore order.
All told, at least 50 demonstrations against Israel’s war on Hamas erupted on campuses across the U.S.
Also on Tuesday, House Republicans announced a plan to combat the insanity. Speaker Mike Johnson’s office said in a statement that the endeavor will include scrutinizing federal funding and tax benefits of universities that allow such activities, as well as crackdowns on foreign student visa recipients who foster sympathy for terrorist groups at U.S. colleges and universities.
Johnson said at a press conference:
We all know what is happening around the country right now, and House Republicans are here to do something about it. Over the last few weeks, we’ve seen absolute lawlessness and chaos on college and university campuses across America.
On Wednesday of last week, I, and a handful of my Republican colleagues traveled to Columbia University, which became the epicenter in the last couple of weeks, to meet with Jewish students there and to see the madness … for ourselves.
The anti-Jewish hatred was appalling. We heard first-hand from students who are living in fear because of the pro-Hamas agitators who have taken over their campus. … They told us the harrowing tales of what they’re having to face. It’s not right — and everybody in this country knows it.
[…]
Antisemitism is a virus and because the administration and woke university presidents aren’t stepping in, we’re seeing it spread. We must act, and House Republicans will speak to this fateful moment with moral clarity.
The Speaker was joined by other House GOP leaders who will lead various parts of the plan to hold universities accountable for failure to protect Jewish students.
Education and the Workforce Chairwoman Virginia Foxx (R-NC) nailed it.
College is not a park for play acting juveniles or a battleground for radical activists. Everyone affiliated with these universities will receive a healthy dose of reality. Actions have consequences.
Other House leaders who stood with Johnson included Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan (R-OH), Oversight Chairman James Comer (R-KY), Ways and Means Chairman Jason Smith (R-MO), Energy and Commerce Chairwoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA), and Space and Technology Chairman Frank Lucas (R-OK).
Here’s more:
The GOP-led House is already considering legislation to settle on a definition of anti-Semitism that could facilitate withholding funds for schools found to be in violation of federal anti-discrimination law. After the bill advanced out of the Rules Committee on Monday night, it may get a House floor vote as early as Wedneday.
While some Democrats have joined Republicans in demanding colleges get a grip on the protests, where protesters have made demands such as divesting from Israel, members of the leftist wing of the party have been more sympathetic to the activists.
To no one’s surprise, Hamas sympathizer — make that, cheerleader — Democrat Rep. Ilhan Omar predictably posted the following on X (formerly Twitter) on Tuesday.
A sitting Senator, labels Americans protesting against a foreign country accused of carrying out a genocide funded with our tax dollars as terrorists and puts a target on their back to be attacked. This is insanely dangerous and somehow no one will condemn it.
“Accused of carrying out a genocide” by anti-Israel activists like Omar, that is.
A sitting Senator, labels Americans protesting against a foreign country accused of carrying out a genocide funded with our tax dollars as terrorists and puts a target on their back to be attacked. This is insanely dangerous and somehow no one will condemn it. pic.twitter.com/TWKiUpDqZx
— Ilhan Omar (@IlhanMN) April 30, 2024
Commenting on the topic of campus protests last Friday, Omar referred to Jewish students as “pro-genocide or anti-genocide,” in reference to Jews who support or condemn Israel.
Speaking of pro-Hamas chearleaders, Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-NY) absurdly said in a statement:
The provocative images painted by Republicans and antisemitic white supremacist platforms could not be further from the truth.
If nothing else, the endeavor announced by Mike Johnson and House Republicans will force congressional Democrats in both chambers to either stand with the likes of Ilhan Omar and Jamaal Bowman, or for the protection of Jewish students who only seek to attend college without fear.
In saner times, the above choice would be a no-brainer.
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