WASHINGTON, D.C. – In her second public display of support for fellow Democrats disciplined for anti-semitic comments, 3rd District Kansas Congresswoman Sharice Davids joined the minority last week in opposition to a censure vote for a colleague advocating the destruction of the Nation of Israel.
The censure vote Davids opposed in the U.S. Congress was a formal reprimand for Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib of Michigan for extensive anti-semitic comments , including the pro-Hamas chant “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.” The chant which has emerged as a rallying cry for supporters of the terrorists who slaughtered some 1,200 Israelis in the October 7 attack, which brought a massive retaliation by Israel against Hamas strongholds in Gaza.
Davids represents Kansas’ 3rd District which includes Anderson, Franklin, Miami, Johnson and part of Wyandotte counties and the only Democrat representing Kanas in the U.S. Congress. Twenty-two Democrats joined Republicans in the censure vote against Tlaib. Davids opposed her Sunflower State Republican counterparts Ron Estes, Jake LaTurner and Tracey Mann in the 234-188 vote.
Censure is a formal vote of disapproval that carries no real penalties. The resolution censuring Tlaib, forwarded by Georgia Republican Rep. Rich McCormick, asserts Tlaib had promoted “false narratives regarding the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel and for calling for the destruction of the state of Israel.”
Congresswoman Davids’ spokesman Zac Donley said Davids had “very real concerns” about Tlaib’s inflammatory language, but that censures were distractions.
“She (Davids) believes the constant censuring of members of congress distracts from important issues at hand, like ensuring appropriate aid to Israel and averting a government shutdown here at home,” Donley told the Review.
But the Tlaib incident isn’t the first time Davids has supported her radical progressive Democratic congressional cohorts in their anti-Semitic musings. She was on the record in February with a vote of support for Rep. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, when Republicans sought her ouster from the House Committee on Foreign Affairs over comments attacking Jewish lobbyists and asserting support for Israel by Republicans was “all about the Benjamins,” a reference to $100 from a rap song. Omar later apologized for the comments.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ASvFNXeCI4
Both Omar and Tlaib are followers of Islam and have been longtime supporters of Palestinians in the decades-long violence and political strife with Israel in the region of the Middle East. Davids’ support for her anti-Semitic fellow Democrats puts her at odds with elements within the two largest population areas of her district. In April Johnson County Commissioners unanimously passed a resolution formally adopting the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s working definition of anti-Semitism and recognized what they called an increasing number of incidents in the region and nation. The resolution is not legally binding but intended instead to spread awareness and education of the issue.
“Anti-Semitism has no place in Johnson County, and it is contrary to the values of a democratic society,” said JOCO Board of Commissioners Chairman Mike Kelly.
Public Information Officer for Wyandotte County Krystal McFeders told the Review WYCO’s Administration & Human Services Standing Committee adopted a similar resolution in October.
Davids also received a $4,000 campaign donation from Omar for her 2018 campaign.Critics have suggested Davids return the money after Omar’s anti-Jewish comments, but to date she has not done so.