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Floor Speech

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Mr. BARRASSO. Mr. President, I come to the floor today to talk about this dangerous rise that we are seeing in anti-Semitism. We are seeing it in this country, and we are seeing it all around the world.

One of the most important vows that our Nation made to the Jewish people is the vow of ``never again.'' I have a simple question. Are we doing everything that we can to keep that vow in the wake of October 7 and the Hamas terrorist attack against Israel? A month ago, Hamas killed more Jews in a single day than at any time since the Holocaust. Yet some students, professors, and public officials in our country are indulging and even endorsing this act, which to me is torture and mass murder, and anyone who has witnessed the videos could say nothing but torture and mass murder.

Once again, the Jewish people are being threatened simply for who they are and for what they believe. It is happening to individuals all around the country and around the world. There are those who are praising the horrific mass murder, torture, and kidnapping of Jews by Hamas terrorists. Some of that praise is even coming from right here in Washington, DC, and across our country.

Anti-Semitic incidents of vandalism, harassment, and assault are up almost 400 percent compared to this time a year ago. In October of 2022, there were 64 total anti-Semitic incidents reported in America. October 7, 2023--the day Hamas attacked Israel--since that day to today, over 300 reported incidents. That is a 400-percent increase compared to last year, and that is in America alone.

Anti-Semitism is festering on college campuses. You probably heard about several of these incidents. Fifty-one student groups, including at Berkeley, the University of Michigan, and UCLA, signed a letter in support of Hamas's brutal terrorist, murderous attacks. Students at George Washington University, right here, located in our Nation's Capital, held a vigil that they described as a ``Vigil for the Martyrs of Palestine.'' And they projected ``Glory to our Martyrs'' right on the library wall. It is disturbing and it is hateful.

A pro-Hamas mob at Cooper Union University in New York City stormed the library. The mob started banging on doors and windows. Jewish students were trapped. They feared for their lives. Eventually, they had to be escorted to safety. No one has been punished.

A Cornell student was arrested last week for posting anti-Semitic death threats on the school's messaging boards. Weeks earlier, a Cornell professor said he was exhilarated by Hamas's brutality. Students at Tulane University, which is 40 percent Jewish, were also attacked. Pro-Hamas protesters tried to burn an Israeli flag. One speaker at Princeton University went so far as to equate Israel with Nazi Germany. After a mass murder of innocent Jewish mothers, fathers, children, and Holocaust survivors, radical students and professors in this country have the gall to compare the Jews to those who sought to systemically kill them during the holocaust.

Let's imagine that we are Jewish students who go to these schools and live in these communities. Here is how one Jewish student describes her situation on campus. This young lady said:

It is terrifying to see classmates call for violence against Jews so confidently and so publicly.

In other words, for many Jewish students, ``never again'' has turned into ``nowhere is safe.''

The University of Wyoming, rightly, has called out the evil in the wake of the terrorist attack against Israel. Our University President, Ed Seidel, and our Provost, Kevin Carman, condemned the ``heinous . . . acts of terrorism'' against Israel. Every university should do the same.

America can't turn its back on the Jewish people of Israel or on Israel. That is exactly what I fear we are seeing right now.

Hamas's brutality is front page news every single day. Israel is clear-eyed in its mission to destroy Hamas. Instead of standing shoulder to shoulder with our closest ally in the Middle East, the Biden administration is currently calling for a ``pause.'' The United Nations' 120 members recently voted in favor of a resolution calling for a cease-fire. In the House of Representatives right down the hall, a group of Members known as the Squad are also demanding a cease-fire. I didn't hear them call for a cease-fire when Hamas attacked Israel. They only want Israel to stop defending itself. That is the role of the Squad.

There already was a cease-fire before October 7. Hamas broke that cease-fire. More than 1,400 innocent Israelis and Americans are now dead. A pause or a cease-fire now would only help Hamas dig in and rearm. I am against a pause. I am against a cease-fire. America should never take action that could help terrorists prevail. To me, that is what a cease-fire would do.

Instead of a cease-fire, we need to cease paying Hamas; we need to cease paying Iran; and we need to cease being silent in the face of anti-Semitism.

Moments like this are very concerning and also moments like this are very clarifying. America has existed from the very beginning to protect our freedom of religion. As President George Washington wrote in a letter to a Newport synagogue in 1790--he said America promises to give ``bigotry no sanction.''

America stands on the values of respect and toleration.

When we vowed ``never again,'' we meant it and continue to mean it today. As we confront the worst massacre of Jews since the Holocaust, our entire Nation must do everything we can to keep our word.

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