Congresswomen Omar and Tlaib are employing the time-tested, drip-by-drip method used successfully by Islamists in Europe against Jews and Israel.  Week after week, poisonous remarks against Israel or Jews are made by Islamists, with the goal being a continuous seepage of anti-Jewish caricatures into the political discourse and into the minds of a country's population.  Forced apologies are insincere, an expedient — a breather until the next time.  It's death by a thousand cuts to Israel and her supporters. 

After a rightful uproar, Islamists try to silence critics by claiming that criticism against what they said is rooted in Islamophobia, a term created by CAIR, the American offshoot of the Muslim Brotherhood.  Not only does this chill and silence people down the road who accurately hear anti-Semitic and dismantling-of-Israel pronouncements, but it is intended to make critics and the political class feel guilty for somehow being "anti-Muslim."  The upshot: Instead of what should be a clear statement against the anti-Semitism of people like Omar and Tlaib, statements are watered down to now include warnings against Islamophobia, with implicit assertions that the national population has been anti-Muslim. 

The Europeans have genuflected and played into the hands of this Islamist strategy.  The Muslim Brotherhood–jihadist ploy seems to be working.  Over time, the actual anti-Semitic act is forgotten, and, instead, the secondary statement regarding Islamophobia grows in stature and becomes, on record, the primary focus when speaking of the need to stop "hate."  The result has been more focus on Islamophobia rather than on anti-Semitism or anti-Christianism, even though anti-Muslim attacks fall in number far below attacks against Jews and despite the fact that there are far more physical attacks today from Muslims against Jews and Christians than by Jews and Christians against Muslims. 

The more attacks by Muslims on Jews and Christians, starting with 9/11, the more focus has been placed on stopping "Islamophobia."  Imagine if there were increasing attacks by whites against blacks, with black criticism of these attacks resulting in white people calling blacks anti-white for bringing up the issue.  And instead of pronouncements against racism, we end with proclamations condemning "whitephobia."  Such a thing would never happen, but today, Islamophobia has been elevated to the top of the phobia charts, with almost everything secondary and subservient to it.

The unwillingness of the Democrat leadership to immediately denounce Ilhan Omar specifically and to stop this anti-Jewishness dead in its tracks is a worrisome sign that, as with their Labor Party counterpart in England, Corbyn-ism is far heavier in the Democratic Party than we thought.  The Democrat leadership seem to be making a choice, preferring the intersectionality voting blocs with whom they envision their future.  David Duke has, like the Black and Progressive Caucuses, tweeted his support for Omar as well.

Down the road, this unwarranted but official congressional proclamation today against Islamophobia will muzzle any rightful criticism of sharia or terrorism as a manifestation of bigotry, with calls for censure of those shining the light on the dangers to us from Islamism.  Omar commits verbal anti-Semitism, and in consequence, America is warned not to be Islamophobic.  Talk about creating victory out of defeat, as well as how our side allows itself to be held guilty for sins done by others.

The Jewish organizational community, almost entirely liberal and Democrat, has not pressured the Democrat leadership in any way near the degree they would have if the victim of hate had been black, Islamic, Hispanic, or LGBT.  Furthermore, there has been no unified call by the 36 Jewish Democrat members of Congress against Omar.  Most liberal Jews seem unconcerned when anti-Semitism comes from the political left, their home base. 

It's also no surprise that Jewish organizational clout has diminished, since the Democrat leadership knows full well that Jewish votes and funding will continue as before.  They always do.  It seems that most Jews need the Democratic Party more than the party needs them.  Most are more afraid of American conservatives than they are of the Muslim Brotherhood, more afraid of Republicans than anti-Semitic groups on the Left, more fearful of whites than minorities.  It's not logical, but emotional.  A terrible error...and perhaps a form of prejudice.

Rabbi Aryeh Spero is author of Push Back, president of Caucus for America, and spokesman for the National Conference of Jewish Affairs.

Image: Lorie Shaull via Flickr.