Reps. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) and Cori Bush (D-MO) were the only House members to vote against a bill that would bar Hamas members and those who participated in the attacks against Israel last year from entering the United States.
The House passed the bill, No Immigration Benefits for Hamas Terrorists Act, 422-2-1, on Wednesday evening. Rep. Delia Ramirez (D-IL) voted present, and Tlaib and Bush were the sole votes against the measure, which now heads to the Senate.
While Hamas and Palestine Islamic Jihad members were already prohibited from entering the U.S. under existing laws, the new bill now expands to officers of the Palestine Liberation Organization, which is the governing body of the Palestinian enclave, and anyone who was involved in the Oct. 7 attacks against the Jewish state who is not listed as a member of a terrorist group.
Tlaib said in a statement that the No Immigration Benefits for Hamas Terrorists Act was "unnecessary" and "redundant."
"It’s just another GOP messaging bill being used to incite anti-Arab, anti-Palestinian, and anti-Muslim hatred that makes communities like ours unsafe," said the Michigan Democrat, who is the only Palestinian American in Congress.
"I made a promise to my residents when they sent me to Congress that I would take meaningful actions to end hateful Trump-era immigration policies, reunite families, welcome migrants and asylum seekers, and reform our immigration system," Tlaib added. "I reaffirm that commitment today, and will always speak truth to power in the face of disgusting attempts by my colleagues to dehumanize our immigrant neighbors.”
The Democratic caucus widely approved of the bill, noting that it had the full support of House Judiciary Committee ranking member Jerry Nadler (D-NY).
