'Deport Foreign Students On Visas Who Support Hamas': Marsha Blackburn Rails At Antisemitic Students

4 months ago

On the Senate floor yesterday, Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) decried antisemitic college students on college campuses, and decried a possible push to bring Gaza refugees to the U.S.

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Transcript

00:00 Thank you, Mr. President. Across the country, we are witnessing one of the worst waves of

00:06 anti-Semitism that we have ever seen in our nation's history. I appreciate that my colleague

00:13 from Oklahoma spoke previously to this. Now, one of the things that we have learned is a little bit

00:21 about the leading perpetrators of these protests that are taking place. What we have found is that

00:32 far-left activists, including college students at some of the most prestigious universities,

00:41 are involved in these activities. We've all seen the pro-Hamas demonstrators that are harassing

00:50 and intimidating Jewish students. They're blocking them from attending class or even from accessing

00:59 public spaces. And they're doing this with these protests and with these illegal encampments.

01:08 Here are some examples of what we have had reported to us and what we have seen from

01:16 individuals that are walking through these encampments with their cell phones.

01:21 At Columbia University, activists chanted "We are Hamas" and "Long live Hamas." At George

01:31 Washington University, one pro-Hamas demonstrator walked around campus with a sign calling for a

01:39 final solution against the Jewish people. We've seen activists hand out flyers calling for

01:47 "Death to America" and "Death to Israeli real estate." And at schools like Princeton,

01:55 students have waved the flag of terror groups, including the flag of Hezbollah.

02:04 One thing should be obvious. The anti-Israel protests on campuses across this country

02:11 are hotbeds for terrorist sympathizers and for anti-Jewish hatred. Never did I think I would see

02:21 this in the United States of America. In fact, some of these college groups that are out protesting,

02:29 including at Columbia, have allegedly held events with the terrorist organization

02:37 Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine. These demonstrations have absolutely no place

02:46 in America. And Tennesseans are telling me these demonstrations have no place in our great state

02:55 of Tennessee. But instead of cracking down on these activists and the students who are out there

03:06 peddling anti-Semitism and are glorifying terrorism, many schools are beginning to bow

03:14 to their demands. I find this abhorrent and disgusting. In negotiations with pro-Hamas

03:24 demonstrators, Northwestern University agreed to offer coveted faculty positions to Palestinian

03:32 academics and set aside full-ride scholarships for Palestinian students. To appease its pro-Hamas

03:42 students, Brown University last week agreed to hold a vote on divesting from Israel.

03:51 After negotiating with pro-Hamas activists for weeks, Columbia University has canceled

03:58 its commencement ceremony. We can only bring an end to this disturbing illegal behavior when there

04:08 are actual consequences. College students who promote terrorism on behalf of Hamas should be

04:16 added to the TSA no-fly list and we should deport foreign students on visas who support Hamas,

04:25 a U.S.-designated terror organization. And universities that allow anti-Semitism on their

04:34 campuses should be defunded. The Stop Anti-Semitism on College Campuses Act, which I introduced

04:43 alongside Senator Tim Scott, would ensure that that happens. But instead of standing up for

04:51 Jewish students, President Biden has drawn, unfortunately, a moral equivalence between

04:58 pro-Hamas activists and pro-Israel Americans. When asked about the anti-Semitic demonstrations

05:06 last month, the president said, and I quote, "He condemns those who don't understand what's going

05:15 on with the Palestinians." At the same time, the president has focused on pushing billions

05:23 in new illegal student loan forgiveness, forgiveness that could very well benefit the

05:29 students who are out leading these demonstrations. So that is why I have joined my Senate Republican

05:39 colleagues in introducing the No Bailouts for Campus Criminals Act, which would make any person

05:48 who is convicted of a state or federal offense in connection with a campus protest ineligible

05:56 for any federal student loan forgiveness. The president is also reportedly looking to welcome

06:04 Gazans to America as refugees. According to a recent poll, 71 percent of Gazans said they

06:14 supported Hamas' horrific October 7th attack on Israeli civilians. 71 percent of Gazans said they

06:29 supported Hamas' horrific attack on October 7th. More than 300 individuals on the terror watch list

06:38 have entered our country under President Biden, but for some reason this administration

06:45 thinks that they can vet Gazans who elected Hamas as their government, who support the terrorist

06:55 attack. They think they can properly vet them and bring them into this country. Have they not

07:03 asked Egypt, Jordan, other countries in the region why they will not take these Palestinian refugees?

07:13 I think it would be instructive. And our country cannot afford more failed leadership and not

07:25 knowing who is coming into this country who may wish us harm. We would like to see the president

07:36 rescind this and review his priorities and make it his priority to protect the American people.

07:46 I yield the floor and note the absence of a quorum.

07:49 The clerk will call the roll.

07:51 Ms. Baldwin.

'Deport Foreign Students On Visas Who Support Hamas': Marsha Blackburn Rails At Antisemitic Students

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