The local hospitality committee contacts you that two different people need meals this week, and want to know if you would have them over. Both of these people have been to you previously, but last time the chicken you made was dry.
The first person told a few people the chicken was dry, and generally doubted your ability to make a good chicken. They said your chicken-making policies were ineffective, and although you had a lovely home and many of the other dishes you made excelled, in this one aspect you were lacking.
The second person called your boss, demanded you be fired, told the whole community that you are a racist and a bigot, and said that you did not deserve to exist. They also put up posters all around town demanding everyone boycott your house, comparing you to Nazi Germany and apartheid South Africa.
You invite the first person, and deny entry to the second.
Now the second person says that you denying them entry proves all the terrible things they said about you. Now all the people that live on their side of town talk about how disgusting you are for denying them entry. Now they say that you can’t handle simple critiques of your chicken-making ability. Despite happily accepting the first person, whose criticisms are well known, you are now deemed “intolerant.”
This is what happened last week when Israel made the morally correct decision to deny entry to the pro-BDS-supporting Congresswomen Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib. This was not Israel’s initial decision. Initially, Israel allowed Omar and Tlaib to come. Then Israel received the Congresswomen’s itinerary.
The itinerary was titled “US Congressional Delegation to Palestine.” Right off the bat their agenda was clear. They were going to use this trip as another club to beat Israel with, in order to justify their comparisons of Israel to Nazis – a comparison that the State Department recently added as an example of anti-Semitism. They were planning to meet with the terrorist-tied Defense for Children International–Palestine (DCI-P). According to NGO Monitor, “DCI-P leads the campaign exploiting children to promote demonization of Israel, and is linked to the PFLP (The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine) terror group. Many of its allegations are false and part of attempts to smear Israel with allegations of ‘war crimes’ and promote BDS.”
Their trip was also sponsored by Muftah, which praises suicide bombers, accuses Jews of using Christian blood to bake Passover matzah, and refers to terrorists as heroes. The connection between Muftah and this trip was part of the calculus of Israel’s decision, according to a statement by the Prime Minister’s Office. Nonetheless, Muftah was not mentioned at all in many mainstream media articles, including CNN, MSNBC, USA Today, and the Huffington Post.
There has also been a concerted attempt by the left to gaslight the American people into believing that Israel’s reason for denying entry was because of simple political differences, as opposed to Tlaib’s and Omar’s bigotry towards Israel.
Elizabeth Warren said, “Israel doesn’t advance its case as a tolerant democracy or unwavering US ally by barring elected members of Congress from visiting because of their political views.” Representative Jerry Nadler tweeted, “I strongly condemn this decision by the Israeli government, which undermines the ability for our two allied countries to have the frank, open, and, at times, difficult discussions that we must have in order to ensure Israel remains a secure and democratic nation.” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said, “No democratic society should fear an open debate.” What to do about settlements or terrorism is a difficult discussion, one that Israel is open to having. The call for the economic destruction of the Jewish state is not a “discussion”; it’s a declaration of war.
The most egregious example of gaslighting came from Vice President Joe Biden. “No democracy should deny entry to visitors based on the content of their ideas – even ideas they strongly object to,” he said on Twitter. It’s not his language that is ridiculous; that is par for the course coming from the left. It is the fact that in 2012, the Obama administration, in which he served as Vice President, banned a sitting member of the Knesset (MK) from entering the United States. That MK wasn’t calling for the destruction of the United States, as Omar and Tlaib do to Israel; rather, he was connected with Meir Kahane’s Kach party, which the US considered a terrorist organization.
Given their multiple attacks on the State of Israel and the Jewish people as a whole, denying entry to Omar and Tlaib was the morally correct decision. They do not deserve access to a place for the sole purpose of attempting to destroy it. If the itinerary wasn’t enough evidence, what occurred after they were denied entry clarified their agenda even more.
In the original statement by PM Netanyahu’s office, he opened the door to Rashida Tlaib, who is the daughter of Palestinians, to visit her family in Judea and Samaria for humanitarian reasons. In response to this offer, Tlaib submitted a letter to the Minister of the Interior that read, “I would like to request admittance to Israel in order to visit my relatives, and specifically my grandmother, who is in her 90s and lives in Beit Ur al-Fouqa. This could be my last opportunity to see her. I will respect any restrictions and will not promote boycotts against Israel during my visit.”
Israel granted the request, and said that Tlaib could visit (about which the Daily Mail lied and said was a “stunning U-turn” despite the option being given to Tlaib in Netanyahu’s statement). The request clearly backfired on Tlaib, who was hoping to be rejected so she can publicly announce how heartless Israel is. Since Israel didn’t reject her, Tlaib turned down their offer.
In a statement to the press, Rashida Tlaib said that Israel’s request that she not use a family visit to promote the destruction of the State as evidence that they are “undemocratic and afraid” they are of “the truth my trip would reveal.” The Knesset’s 2015 election gave the Arab party, which is constantly criticizing Israeli policy, 13 out of 120 seats, making them the third largest party. That does not sound like a state that is either undemocratic or afraid.
Tlaib’s rejection of the offer, despite the age of her grandmother, demonstrates that she hates Jews more than she loves her own family. If she cannot use her trip to club the Jewish state, it’s apparently not worth going.
While this move by Israel was morally correct, it may have political consequences. Prior to Israel’s decision, President Trump tweeted that if Bibi allowed Omar and Tlaib to enter Israel, it would be considered “weak.” This created a lot of speculation, despite rumors that Israel was already planning on denying entry – that the decision was solely due to pressure from Trump. Netanyahu, who is facing his second election this year, has campaign posters all around the country of him and Trump together. If the Israeli people feel that Netanyahu made this decision because of Trump, it may cost him the election.
Additionally, denying entry to Omar and Tlaib gave them a PR win. The narrative has spun to be that the only two Muslim members of Congress, who are critical of Israel, have been denied entry, which makes Israel bigoted and afraid. Despite their calls for Israel’s economic destruction, comparisons to Nazis, and allegiances with terrorist groups, Omar and Tlaib painted themselves as the victims. Many of their critics believe that the damage done by denying them entry is greater than what they could have done allowing them to enter and do what they would do.
Sometimes, though, politics must be put aside for what is morally right. It is wrong to allow someone into your house who is intent on destroying it. The millions of Israeli citizens who face economic attacks at the behest of these two deserve to be put ahead of the temporary political backlash that any politician will receive. Israel made the right decision here, and set a strong precedent. Nobody who calls for the destruction of the State of Israel will be allowed in. That is a standard set by every nation in the world, and that standard must still be met, even to members of Congress.
Moshe Hill is a political journalist who has written for The Daily Wire, the Queens Jewish Link, and the Jewish Link of New Jersey. He is regularly featured on ‘The Josh M Show’ podcast. Subscribe to aHillwithaview.com for more content from Moshe Hill. Like him on Facebook at facebook.com/ahillwithaview and follow him on Twitter @TheMoHill.