JUST IN: Dems Asked About Harvard President Claudine Gay After Vote To Keep Her In Office

At a House Democratic press briefing on Tuesday, Rep. Pete Aguilar (D-CA) was asked about Harvard President Claudine Gay.

Transcript

00:00 I just want to get your thoughts on this.

00:03 So obviously, there was that education hearing last week.

00:06 You had Congresswoman Elise Stefanik

00:08 calling for the resignation of the university president.

00:10 Harvard came out with a statement this morning

00:12 saying that they will back their president.

00:16 Stefanik has still come out saying

00:17 that that is not an acceptable move.

00:19 But there are Democrats who have been saying

00:21 that Republicans on this front have been hypocritical when

00:24 it comes to calling for the end of anti-Semitism,

00:27 but they do not condemn the actions of white nationalists

00:29 throughout the country.

00:30 So what are your thoughts on that?

00:32 And how do you think that this needs to play out now

00:34 as Republicans continue this call?

00:36 Yeah, I mean, this Republican call is--

00:41 I think my first observation is discussions

00:45 around Israel and anti-Semitism are so important.

00:49 They're so impactful.

00:51 They need to be also apolitical.

00:54 We need to keep the politics out of this.

00:57 This has been an issue of bipartisan discussion

01:00 and concern in the past.

01:03 My concern today is that House Republicans

01:06 are doing everything they can to try to push forward these issues

01:12 and make them partisan when there is clearly

01:15 bipartisan support.

01:18 There is bipartisan support to continue

01:20 to stand with our colleagues-- our friends in Israel,

01:26 as well as to ensure that we defeat Hamas,

01:30 return hostages back, provide aid to the Palestinian people.

01:35 Those are the topics that unite us.

01:37 Those are the issues that unite us.

01:39 The distraction around questions and college presidents--

01:44 that's Republicans just trying to further divide us.

01:47 And I think that's unfortunate, because this

01:49 is a topic that screams for bipartisan support.

01:54 And we're going to do our level best to make sure

01:57 that we do that each and every term.

02:01 Thank you.