Progressives dish on 'chilling effect' on Israel criticism after uproar over Pramila Jayapal's comments: 'We never do anything constructive on this issue'

• Rep. Pramila Jayapal's comments on Israel caused an uproar this week in Congress.
• But progressives argue that misses the point — and discourages honest criticism of Israeli policy.
• "We never do anything constructive on this issue in Congress," said one top progressive Democrat.

When Democratic Rep. Pramila Jayapal of Washington referred to Israel as a "racist state" at a progressive event in Chicago on Saturday, she also spoke of the strong political headwinds that meet any lawmaker who lodges criticism of Israel, or speaks firmly about the plight of Palestinians.

"While you may have arguments with whether or not some of us on stage are fighting hard enough," Jayapal told a group of pro-Palestinian protesters, "I do want you to know that there is an organized opposition on the other side."

That opposition was demonstrated once more for progressives in the subsequent days.

Even after Jayapal clarified her remarks about Israel, House Democratic leadership issued a statement rebuking her. Separately, 43 House Democrats said in a statement that they were "deeply concerned" about Jayapal's "unacceptable comments." And on Tuesday, House Republicans held a snap vote on a resolution declaring that Israel is "not a racist or apartheid state."

Meanwhile, Israel has continued to greenlight the illegal expansion of settlements deep in the West Bank, settlers often engage in violence against Palestinians, and rocket-fire from Gaza continues, all as the prospect of a two-state solution — and Palestinian self-determination — slips further from view.

"We never do anything constructive on this issue in Congress," said Democratic Rep. Mark Pocan of Wisconsin, a chair emeritus of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, who said he wanted to see a special envoy appointed to deal with the conflict.

"This seems to happen once a year," said Pocan. "There'll be something that flares up, and we overreact, and then we get back to normal."

Couple the congressional reaction with the millions of dollars spent by pro-Israel groups to defeat progressive candidates and incumbents during the 2022 midterms — as well as the looming threat of future primary challenges — and the "chilling effect" that progressive lawmakers face on this issue becomes clear.

"For some actors in this space, that is the intention," said Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York.

"There's a few issues where any nuance is really discouraged," said another progressive House Democrat who insisted on anonymity to discuss the issue frankly. "This is one of them."

Rep. Jamaal Bowman, whose New York District includes Jewish communities in Westchester County, said the situation in Congress was directly impacting the situation in Israel and Palestine.

"One of the reasons why Palestinians continue to suffer in this power dynamic is because we're only having one conversation, and everyone's afraid to be critical," said Bowman.

Bowman also noted the strong reaction that he often gets from constituents for his own criticisms of Israel, including joining other progressives in boycotting this week's address by Israel President Isaac Herzog.

"I know what happens when I say certain things," said Bowman. "I know the calls we get, the emails we get, the letters we get, the tweets that go out, the texts to my phone. I know what happens when I say something like, 'I'm not attending Herzog's address.'"

Bowman may soon face a primary challenge himself from a popular local Democratic official over the positions he's taken on Israel.

"Sometimes the blowback is so intense, you can't even do your job for a number of days," Bowman added. "I can't even respond to constituents' needs, because I'm responding to all this blowback from something I said, which was totally reasonable."

'I understand why this is passionate for her'

In recent years, a growing crop of progressive lawmakers have become more willing to criticize Israeli policies in stark terms, often using the "apartheid" label embraced by numerous international human rights groups and observers.

It's a product of several factors, progressives say, including the growing influence of left-wing advocacy, conditions on the ground in Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories that have become hard to ignore, and even the backgrounds of some of the lawmakers.

Among the nine House Democrats to vote against the Israel resolution were the chambers' three Muslim representatives, including the first two Muslim women elected to Congress, Reps. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota and Rashida Tlaib of Michigan.

Ahead of the Tuesday vote, Tlaib delivered an address detailing the harsh rhetoric used by top Israeli politicians to describe Palestinians.

Sitting behind her the entire time was Rep. Dean Phillips of Minnesota, a Jewish Democrat who was among the lawmakers to co-sign the statement denouncing Jayapal's words.

Phillips embraced Tlaib on the floor after her speech, later telling Insider that though it was "difficult" for him to hear the Michigan Democrats' words, he understood her perspective as a Palestinian woman who still has family members living in the West Bank.

"I have empathy, and I understand why this is passionate for her, and she has given me the same thing," said Phillips. "I gave her respect, and love, because I think she's worthy of it."

But Phillips held firm in his belief that it was important to firmly denounce criticism of Israel when it crosses a certain threshold.

"There needs to be space and place for that criticism" of Israel, said Phillips. "But there are occasions where I think words are awfully damaging from people who have an extraordinary platform, and who I do not think recognize the impact that has beyond the words themselves."

"There's a difference between advocating for Palestinian self-determination, advocating for peace, and criticism of an entire country and people when it is the only place of refuge for the Jewish Diaspora," he added.

'Diversity of opinion on the issue'

Phillips and other Democrats also see the recent rise in anti-Semitic incidents in the US as connected to broad-brushed criticism of Israel.  

Another House Democrat who signed the statement on Jayapal's remarks, speaking privately, cited the nature of pro-Palestinian activism on college campuses and its impact on young Jewish students as a key example.

Progressives, unsurprisingly, take issue with that idea — and they see Republicans in particular as using the issue as a political wedge.

"I believe that the cynicism of it is now very naked," said Ocasio-Cortez. "I think people now see, more than ever before, that these two issues are not conflated, that criticism of Israel is not in any way equivalent to anti-Semitism."

While Jayapal clarified her comments and voted for the Israel resolution, she notably held firm on her belief that the status quo in Israel is "unacceptable, untenable, and unjust."

And beyond the most vocal progressives and the staunchest pro-Israel Democrats, there are other Democrats who find themselves somewhere in the middle — and frustrated over the lack of nuance.

"The Democratic leadership has to acknowledge there's diversity of opinion on the issue of Israel, and especially how right-wing it has become," said another House Democrat who requested anonymity to speak frankly about the issue, who bemoaned that amid the outrage of Jayapal's comments there was "not a real opportunity to discuss some of the very real problems that exist right now" in Israel.

The lawmaker added that they thought Jayapal's comments may have been too "broad" and "sweeping," but that some lawmakers "live in denial that there are actual issues of discrimination, and segregation, and some racism by representatives of the [Israeli] government."

And though the word "apartheid" has increasingly been employed by international human rights groups — including within Israel — the lawmaker took issue with the term, given its specific association with pre-1990s South Africa and its relative foreign-ness to American history.

They readily conceded, however, that "segregation" would be an appropriate term to describe the treatment that Palestinians often face.