When we first saw the words "smear campaign against Rashida" we assumed it had something to do with that political cartoon of her pager exploding on her desk. Fellow member of the Hamas caucus Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez already bashed the cartoon as "disgusting" Islamophobia.
Rep. Ilhan Omar, though, has CNN in her sights for taking part in the smear campaign against Tlaib.
The smear campaign against Rashida is absolutely reprehensible.
— Ilhan Omar (@IlhanMN) September 23, 2024
Spreading blatant misinformation and refusing to issue a correction is malpractice.
This is irresponsible and poor journalism. Do better @CNN. https://t.co/9u7HPdOFB6
CNN reports in a fact-check:
Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel, a Democratic state lawmaker, and some news agencies are falsely claiming that U.S. Rep. Rashida Tlaib said Nessel’s office only filed charges against pro-Palestinian activists at the University of Michigan because she’s Jewish.
The spurious claims stem from an interview that Tlaib did with Metro Times on Sept. 13. Tlaib, who was born in Detroit to Palestinian immigrants and is the only Palestinian American member of Congress, argued the charges were an unjust and heavy-handed response to peaceful civil disobedience.
…
Shortly after the article was published, state Sen. Jeremy Moss, a Democrat who is Jewish, posted a screenshot of the story on X and claimed that Tlaib’s response was an attempt “to divide us into ‘good’ Jews she accepts & bad Jews.”
“This is a disgusting charge of dual loyalty – Jews in America cannot fully uphold American ideals because we are fundamentally biased in favor of our religion over our citizenship,” Moss wrote.
What Tlaib actually said was, “It seems that the Attorney General decided if the issue was Palestine, she was going to treat it differently, and that alone speaks volumes about possible biases within the agency she runs.”
Tlaib was referring to anti-Palestinian attitudes.
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Tlaib is an anti-Semite and terrorist sympathizer who deserves to be smeared.
You both hate Jews and America. It’s not a smear campaign, it’s people noticing how much you both hate Jews and America.
— Chet Cannon (@Chet_Cannon) September 24, 2024
It's a national disgrace that either of you are in Congress.
— Jeff Carlson (@themarketswork) September 24, 2024
She’s a walking smear campaign of herself
— Mayson Burch (@anticatlady) September 23, 2024
She has not once condemned Hamas and Hezbollah for their vicious brutality against Israelis, congresswoman. She has knowingly amplified Islamist propaganda. She has never condemned the Jihadi massacre of Jews on 10/7. She is literally antisemitic.
— Andrew C Laufer, Esq (@lauferlaw) September 24, 2024
No smear. She (and you) are openly antisemitic, and you both support terrorists. Tlaib literally removed Israel from a map the day she took office.
— Kathy Lehner (@LehnerKath) September 24, 2024
The woman censured for past antisemitic remarks is now defending Rashida Tlaib's antisemitism. Can it get any more ridiculous? If I were Rashida this is one person I wouldn't want commenting on this. 🙄
— THOMAS (@TommyInPA) September 24, 2024
Perhaps you and your terrorist loving cohorts in Congress should "do better".
— Hutch (@HutchAutomation) September 23, 2024
And what should the correction be exactly?
— 1970Tarheel (@1970tarheel) September 24, 2024
CNN's fact-check concludes that Tlaib did not say Nessel charged pro-Palestinian protesters because she’s Jewish — it comes to her defense. Which it shouldn't bother to.
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