House Minority Leader Rep. Hakeem Jeffries of New York is slamming comments from Hasan Piker after the far-left controversial online streamer suggested that Jewish Americans were inviting violence against themselves over their support for Israel.
“The malicious claim that American Jews are inviting violence against themselves is dangerous and antisemitic,” Jeffries charged in a social media post. And he added in a CNN interview on Tuesday that Piker’s comments were “malicious” and “should not be tolerated by anyone in the public square.”
While Jeffries became the highest-ranking congressional Democrat to fire back at Piker, the criticism from the top Democrat in the U.S. House comes after he has largely stayed silent on the far-left insurgency, backed in part by Piker, that’s gripped his party this election cycle.
Jeffries spoke out after Piker, on his stream last week, featured an image of state Sen. Jeremy Moss, the Democratic nominee in Michigan’s 11th Congressional District. Moss, who is Jewish, has said that people are sharing a fake audio clip of him claiming that his entire reason for running for Congress is to make sure that America continues to support Israel.
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“If Jews in America keep putting this idea out there that they are singularly invested in Israel, eventually someone is going to come around and take action, not against the state of Israel, mind you, but against American Jews,” Piker warned.
Piker, who has over three million online followers, has repeatedly stood by his numerous past comments slamming Israel over its ongoing war against Hamas in Gaza.
Jeffries emphasized in his social media post, “There is zero justification for threats against the safety of our Jewish brothers and sisters at a moment of rising hate. We will fight the cancer of antisemitism with the fierce urgency of now.”
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Piker’s comments were also blasted by Democratic Rep. Hillary Scholten, D-Mich., who charged that Piker is “a hack who thrives on hate.”
Rep. Susie Lee, D-Nev., took to X to write, “Claims that American Jews are responsible for the violence being committed against their communities are unacceptable and cannot be tolerated. It’s dangerous and antisemitic.”
“We must stand up to the scourge of antisemitism wherever it rears its ugly head,” Lee added.
Rep. Josh Gottheimer, D-N.J., praised Jeffries’ pushback against Piker.
In an interview on Fox News’ “America’s Newsroom,” Gottheimer called Piker’s comments something “right out of the Nazi playbook.”
Gottheimer, who is Jewish and a strong supporter of Israel, emphasized, “This is a call for violence against Jews,”
He was also critical of Abdul El-Sayed, the Democratic Senate nominee in Michigan.
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El-Sayed, who is facing off against former Republican Rep. Mike Rogers in battleground Michigan in a high-stakes Senate showdown, on Monday tried to put some distance between himself and Piker, who is a top supporter.
“I want to be crystal clear, nobody speaks for this campaign besides me and my campaign spokespeople,” El-Sayed said in a statement.
Gottheimer said that El-Sayed insufficiently pushed back against Piker: “El-Sayed’s response was pathetic,”
“No Democratic members should allow Piker anywhere near them on the campaign trail,” Gottheimer argued.
Piker endorsed El-Sayed for the Democratic nomination and appeared at some of the candidate’s campaign events including a primary night party earlier this month in Detroit, Michigan.
Piker’s latest comments were blasted by a growing number of Republicans since they grabbed attention this past weekend, including Rogers, who took aim at both Piker and El-Sayed in a social media post.
“More calls for violence coming out of the El-Sayed campaign,” Rogers said on Sunday. And he claimed, “Here is his running mate, Hasan Piker, saying that if AMERICAN JEWS support Israel, they will be violently targeted because of it.”
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Rogers, who is making a major push to court Democrats in Michigan, added, “Absolutely DISGUSTING. If Abdul El-Sayed had any courage at all, he would call this out and disavow Hasan Piker once and for all. We’re waiting, Abdul…”
El-Sayed, in his Monday statement, wrote, “I believe all Americans deserve the right to advocate for what they believe without fear of violence. This is particularly true for communities that have been intimidated for their beliefs in the past.”
“My commitment to Jewish safety is the same as my commitment to the safety of my own daughters. Antisemitism is a scourge, and we need to address it in all its forms. And I stand against any rhetoric that puts the community at risk,” he added.
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A former Wayne County Health Department director, El-Sayed, if elected in November, would make history as the nation’s first Muslim senator. The epidemiologist who unsuccessfully ran for governor as an insurgent candidate in 2018 has made support for Medicare for all a major component of his campaign and has also called for abolishing Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
El-Sayed used the word “bloodthirsty” to characterize Israel’s military moves in Gaza in an MS NOW interview this month and accused Israeli leadership of genocide against Palestinians. He has argued against unconditional U.S. military aid to Israel, as have other progressive politicians. And El-Sayed has repeatedly declined to directly answer whether Israel has the right to exist.
But El-Sayed has also repeatedly stated that he stands “in solidarity with my Jewish sisters and brothers” to “condemn antisemitism.”
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