Rep. Rashida Tlaib said on Friday that she will not visit her family in the West Bank due to the conditions required by the Israeli government. The decision follows a reversal by Israel, which first barred the Michigan Congresswoman from the country and later granted her entry on humanitarian grounds.
"Visiting my grandmother under these oppressive conditions meant to humiliate me would break my grandmother's heart," the freshman Democrat said in a statement. "Silencing me with treatment to make me feel less-than is not what she wants for me – it would kill a piece of me that always stands up against racism and injustice."
Tlaib had submitted a formal request to Israeli Interior Minister Aryeh Deri on Thursday requesting a visit to see family and her aging grandmother who lives outside Ramallah. "This could be my last opportunity to see her," the request letter read.
Deri had approved the request under the condition that Tlaib cease her support for the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement, a formal campaign aimed at curbing international support for Israel over its treatment and policies towards Palestinians. The movement also aims to pressure Israel to comply with international law on issues such as expanding Israeli settlements in Palestianian territories, which has been declared illegal by the United Nations.
Tlaib's request "was just a provocative request, aimed at bashing the State of Israel," Deri said on Twitter. "Apparently her hate for Israel overcomes her love for her grandmother."
The dual reversals come after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government had originally announced that Tlaib and fellow Democrat Rep. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota would not be allowed into the country, claiming that the "sole purpose" of their visit is to "increase incitement" against Israel.
Netanyahu's decision followed an extraordinary tweet from President Trump urging Israel to bar the two sitting U.S. Congresswomen. "They hate Israel & all Jewish people, & there is nothing that can be said or done to change their minds," Trump said.
<i>Democratic Representative from Minnesota Ilhan Omar (L) and Democratic Representative from Michigan Rashida Tlaib at an event in March. Photo Credit: EPA-EFE/Shutterstock.</i>
Trump's tweet and the decision to bar the lawmakers from an allied country — one that receives billions of U.S. dollars in aid — rocked the political consciousness in Washington and in Israel.
"As a member of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, it is my job to conduct oversight of foreign aid," Omar said in a statement. "The irony of the 'only democracy' in the Middle East making such a decision is that it is both an insult to democratic values and a chilling response to a visit by government officials from an allied nation."
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said that the denial of entry of the Congresswomen "is a sign of weakness, and beneath the dignity of the great State of Israel" — a direct rebuke of Trump's tweet, which said the entry of Omar and Tlaib would "show great weakness."
The American Israel Public Affairs Committee — the powerful pro-Israel lobbying group better known as AIPAC — also said that while it does not support the Congresswomen's "anti-Israel" positions, it does believe that every member of Congress should be able to visit Israel. Republican Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida also said blocking their entry was a mistake.
Yet Washington's ambassador to Israel, David Friedman, said in a statement that the U.S. supported Israel's earlier decision to deny entry. "This trip, pure and simple, is nothing more than an effort to fuel the BDS engine that Congresswomen Tlaib and Omar so vigorously support," Friedman said in a statement.
Tlaib and Omar — the first two Muslim American women ever to be elected to Congress — have been vocal supporters of the BDS movement. In July, the Congresswomen and just a handful of other lawmakers voted against a resolution to formally condemn the BDS campaign. The bill passed overwhelmingly with 398 votes in favor and 17 against.
In a tweet on Friday, the BDS movement said that "Palestinians do not bow to oppressor's diktats" and that the attempt by Israel's "far-right regime" to humiliate Tlaib had failed.
"I cannot allow the Israeli government to take that away from them or to use my deep desire to see my grandmother, potentially for the last time, as a political bargaining chip," Tlaib added in her statement.
Russia has defaulted on some of its foreign debt as a tidal wave of western sanctions threatens its economy. The credit ratings agency S&P has placed Russia under "selective default" after it tried to pay its latest obligations in rubles. Russia now has a 30-day grace period to resolve the issue, but Moscow is threatening to take legal action. George Seay, Annandale Capital's CEO, joined Cheddar to break down what this means, and how Russia defaulting on its debt might impact the global economy.
China's zero-covid policy may pose a wide-ranging threat to the local, and overseas economy. Analysts voicing concern on the strict lockdown in Shanghai as businesses and ports remain shuttered, potentially threatening the global supply chain. Shehzad H. Qazi, Managing Director, China Beige Book International joined Cheddar's Opening Bell to discuss.
The consumer price index in March rose by 8.5% from a year ago, the fastest annual gain since December 1981 and one-tenth of a percentage point above the estimate. The rise in prices is driven by strong consumer demand, supply-chain disruptions and skyrocketing energy costs related to Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Heather Boushey, Council of Economic Advisers Member for President Biden, joined Cheddar's Opening Bell to give her reaction to the latest inflation numbers.
As China faces backlash from its response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the U.S. is strengthening its relationship with India. India is expected to become one of the top three economic powers in the world over the next 10 to 15 years, bolstered by technological advances and the manufacturing sector. Samir Kapadia, CEO and Principal of The Vogel Group, joined Cheddar to discuss the state of India's economy, and how it can only grow from here.
With the midterms just a few months away, record-setting inflation is weighing on the minds of voters. According to a recent CNN poll, a majority of voters said the state of the economy will play a key role in how they cast their ballot, and 55% said the same of inflation. Joseph Zeballos-Roig, Economic Policy Reporter for Insider, joined Cheddar to discuss how inflation could shape the 2022 midterms, and ultimately determine the balance of power in Congress.
The Brooklyn subway attack is the latest in a string of high-profile crimes that have plagued New York City. The surge in crime comes as cities across the country are trying to recover from the pandemic and bring life back to a sense of normal. Joseph Giacalone, professor at John Jay College and retired NYPD sergeant, joined Cheddar's Opening Bell to explain what's behind the rise in crime, and what can be done about it.
After failing to take control of northern and western Ukraine, Russia is shifting its focus to the east. As both sides continue to pour reinforcements into the region, officials are expecting more conventional combat involving tanks, artillery, and aircraft that could shape the war's biggest battles yet. Doug Collins, a former Georgia congressman, joined Cheddar to discuss the change in Russia's tactics.
Catching you up on what you need to know on Apr 14, 2022, with the U.S. sending $800M to Ukraine, updates on the subway shooting in Brooklyn, Gov. Abbott putting a pause on his southern border truck inspections, migrants being bused from Texas to Washington, DC, the travel mask mandate extending until May 3, and more.
This March 19, 2018, file photo shows the Yelp app on an iPad in Baltimore. Yelp reports financial results Thursday, Nov. 7, 2019. The online review service will cover the travel expenses of employees who have to travel out of state for abortions, joining the ranks of major employers trying to help workers affected by restrictions being placed on the procedure in Texas and other states. The benefit announced Tuesday, April 12, 2022 covers Yelp's entire workforce of 4,000 employees, but seems most likely to have its biggest immediate impact on its 200 workers in Texas, which has passed a law banning abortions within the state after six weeks of pregnancy. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, File)
