[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 846 Introduced in House (IH)]

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118th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. RES. 846

                  Censuring Representative Brian Mast.


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                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            November 6, 2023

 Ms. Jacobs submitted the following resolution; which was referred to 
                        the Committee on Ethics

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                               RESOLUTION


 
                  Censuring Representative Brian Mast.

Whereas Representative Brian Mast served honorably in the United States Army 
        with distinct sacrifice, dedication, and bravery;
Whereas Representative Brian Mast has repeatedly made inflammatory statements 
        regarding innocent Palestinian civilians in Gaza who are in harm's way 
        through no fault of their own as a result of horrific terrorist attacks 
        conducted by Hamas on October 7, 2023;
Whereas Representative Brian Mast's refusal to distinguish innocent Palestinians 
        from Hamas terrorists is false, misleading, dehumanizing, dangerous, and 
        unbecoming of a Member of Congress;
Whereas, on October 19, 2023, during a House Foreign Affairs Committee markup, 
        Representative Brian Mast emphatically asserted that any urgently needed 
        humanitarian aid for innocent Palestinian civilians who are in harm's 
        way through no fault of their own ``should be slowed down'' and that 
        there should be ``every effort made to slow down any perceived 
        assistance'';
Whereas, on October 19, 2023, during the same House Foreign Affairs Committee 
        markup, Representative Brian Mast stated that terrorism is ``absolutely 
        supported by the Palestinian people from elementary school all the way 
        up into the elderly'';
Whereas, on November 1, 2023, during a speech on the House Floor, Representative 
        Brian Mast inexcusably compared innocent Palestinian civilians, 
        including children, who are often used as human shields by Hamas 
        terrorists, to ``Nazi'' collaborators that perpetrated the Holocaust 
        against the Jewish people;
Whereas the horrific crime against humanity perpetrated by Nazis that resulted 
        in the murder of more than 6,000,000 Jews during the Holocaust should 
        never be trivialized;
Whereas, on November 1, 2023, during a speech on the House Floor, Representative 
        Brian Mast stated that ``there are very few innocent Palestinian 
        civilians'';
Whereas, on November 2, 2023, Representative Brian Mast again incorrectly 
        conflated innocent Palestinian civilians with Hamas terrorists by 
        tweeting a video of a Hamas leader and asserting that ``a two-state 
        solution means making a state out of these murderous terrorists who are 
        openly calling for the atrocities of October 7 to be committed over and 
        over again'';
Whereas Representative Brian Mast's repeated conflation of innocent Palestinian 
        civilians with Hamas terrorists sends a message to the world that 
        violence against all Palestinians is legitimate and risks the incitement 
        of brutal attacks across the Middle East region including settler 
        violence in the West Bank and Hezbollah aggression in Northern Israel;
Whereas instances of anti-Arab hate and Islamophobia have been on the rise, 
        including the hate-fueled murder of Wadea Al-Fayoume, a 6-year-old 
        Palestinian American, who was stabbed to death in his home in Illinois 
        on October 15, 2023, because of his identity; and
Whereas Representative Brian Mast's comments regarding innocent Palestinian 
        civilians in Gaza are dehumanizing, inflammatory, unacceptable and can 
        be reasonably construed as inviting the targeted murder of innocent 
        Palestinians, fanning the flames of violence in the Middle East and 
        violating the international rules of war: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That Representative Brian Mast be censured.
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