It is really time for the liberal American Jewish Democrat to acknowledge that blatant anti-Semitism has infected the Democratic Party.

Nancy Pelosi has appointed Ilhan Omar to the House Foreign Relations Committee.  Omar is viciously anti-Israel and is in favor of the anti-Israel Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement.  Omar has long been a harsh critic of Israel.  In fact, in 2012 – just "a few days after Gaza-based Hamas terrorists had launched more than 150 deadly rockets into the Jewish state, prompting an Israeli military response – she tweeted that 'the apartheid Israeli regime' had 'hypnotized the world' in order to conceal its own 'evil doings.'"

In fact, the only apartheid in the Middle East comes from Arab countries and is clearly documented by Muslim reporter Khaled Abu Toameh, who regularly highlights the Arab apartheid against Palestinians.

Furthermore, "in 2016, Omar stated that she was in favor of completely divesting the University of Minnesota of its Israel bonds.  The following year, she opposed a bill designed to counter economic boycotts targeting the Jewish state."  In addition, "in 2018, Omar ran for the U.S. House of Representatives seat formerly held by Keith Ellison.  Her campaign was supported by ... the Hamas-linked Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), which  held three fundraising events on Omar's behalf[.]"

Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy asserts that "the Democratic Party is increasingly anti-Israel and flirts, to be charitable, with anti-Semitism. Today we see the latest evidence of the character of what Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez calls the 'New party.'"

Omar is not an anomaly.  To wit, the Palestinian Rashida Tlaib is another newly elected Democrat who harbors intense hatred for Jews and Israel.  Like Omar, Tlaib supports the BDS movement.  Moreover,

[S]upporters of Tlaib's congressional bid included J Street, Michael Moore, and Linda Sarsour[.]  By August 2018, Tlaib had raised more than $30,000 from Islamists affiliated with CAIR, MPAC, MSA, and MAS [all offshoots of the Muslim Brotherhood].

After Tlaib narrowly won the Democratic primary on August 7, she draped herself in a Palestinian flag while celebrating with her supporters.  In her victory speech, she promised to 'fight back against every racist and oppressive structure that needs to be dismantled.'

This is code for dismembering America and Israel and any Western country that wants to maintain basic freedoms. 

If she is to be judged by the company she keeps, it should be noted that "CAIR founder and CEO Nihad Awad congratulated Tlaib on her historic victory of becoming the first Muslim and Palestinian woman in the U.S. Congress."  Moreover, "[a] notable attendee at Tlaib's swearing-in ceremony was the executive director and co-founder of Al-Awda, Abbas Hamideh, who has repeatedly: (a) stated his belief that 'Israel does not have a right to exist'; (b) equated Zionism with Nazism and the genocidal ideology of ISIS; and (c) voiced support for Hezbollah and its leader, Hassan Nasrallah, whom he regards as 'the most honorable Arab-Muslim leader of our lifetime.'  Following the swearing-in ceremony, Hamideh posted to his Twitter account a photo of himself and Tlaib holding up a large painting of the newly elected congresswoman.  He also attended a private dinner with Tlaib, her family, and a number of her friends and activists."

Not surprisingly, "[t]he press ... has not showed much interest in reporting on the attitude of either [woman] toward Jews."  David Harsanyi writes, "Tlaib ... wants to cut aid to the Jewish state because supporting it 'doesn't fit the values of our country.'"

Let's be frank.  It doesn't support the values of a jihadist-loving individual who seeks to demolish fundamental American values.  Harsanyi further explains:

The writer David Steinberg identified 105 news stories written in the immediate aftermath of Omar's victory, and not a single one mentioned her belief that Jewry possessed mind-control abilities or that Israel was 'evil.'  No one called on the Democratic party to distance itself from this rhetoric.

Now, it isn't inherently anti-Semitic to be critical of Israeli political leadership or policies. ... But Omar used a well-worn anti-Semitic trope about the preternatural ability of a nefarious Jewish cabal to deceive the world. ... Omar had a chance to retract, or at least refine, her statement.  Instead, she doubled down.  'These accusations [of anti-Semitism] are without merit,' she claimed, blaming Jewish Islamophobia for the backlash.  Omar even wants the U.S. to normalize relations with the Holocaust-denying terror-state of Iran[.] ... Omar's defenders will claim she's anti-Israel, not anti-Jewish.  'Anti-Zionism has been the preferred justification for hatred of Jews in institutions of education and within progressive activism for a long time. Now it's coming for politics. Democrats can either [refuse to accept it], or they can remain silent.'

It has become clear that many American Jews have substituted liberalism for their religion, and, as Raymond Domanico writes, "American Jews are fervent proselytizers for every "ism" – feminism, environmentalism, pacifism, redistributionism[.]  It's not just that Jews can't distinguish their political friends from their enemies, or that Jews consistently promote non-Jewish values.  Far worse, this reflex liberalism compels them to take positions adverse to their best interests."

But the handwriting has been on the wall, unconcealed and unashamed.  There are Congressional representatives who are working to undermine the country and in the process use the powerful and dangerous prejudice of anti-Semitism.  There is no disputing this; their words and their associations speak for themselves.

Ari Lieberman asks, "[W]hy have Democrats remained silent?  Why have they not issued a full-throated condemnation of Tlaib's vile comments?"  He maintains:

First, many Democrats suffer from Trump Derangement Syndrome, which prevents them from assessing serious matters, such as anti-Semitism, in rational terms.  Tlaib is anti-Semitic to her core but because she is a Trump hater, she's given a free pass.

Second, fear is a powerful motivator and is effective at curbing dissent.  Many within the Democratic Party are fearful of speaking their minds and challenging the new up and coming but still relatively small socialist contingent within the Democratic Party.  The fascist left has been successful in drowning out voices of moderation.

Finally, the Democratic Party itself is metastasizing into an anti-Semitic body much the same way that Britain's Labour Party has.  The British Labour Party, taking its cues from its party boss, Jeremy Corbyn, is rife with Judeophobia and hatred of Israel.

Daniel Jonah Goldhagen in The Devil that Never Dies wrote that "anti-Semitic expression has exploded in volume and intensity.  It has done so with classical tropes and with new ones, in long familiar forums and in recently invented ones."

So a shift has begun that does not bode well.  Until the rank and file among Jewish Americans calls out the anti-Semitism of the Democratic Party, things will not improve, since clearly, the Democratic Party leadership remains mute and indifferent.

Jews of all stripes should recall that in April of 2014, Investor's Business Daily described how the "radical Muslim Brotherhood has built the framework for a political party in America that seeks to turn Muslims into an Islamist voting bloc."  Consequently, "'Muslim voters have the potential to be swing voters in 2016,' said Nihad Awad in launching the benign-sounding U.S. Council of Muslim Organizations, (USCMO) whose membership reads like a Who's Who of Brotherhood front groups.  USCMO also aims to elect Islamists in Washington, with the ultimate objective of 'institutionalizing policies' favorable to Islamists – that is, Shariah law."

Ilhan Omar and Rashid Tlaib's elections are no mere happenstance.  Their success results from carefully coordinated steps "to wage a 'civilization jihad' against America" that explicitly calls for infiltrating the U.S. political system and "destroying [it] from within."

Eileen can be reached at middlemarch18@gmail.com.