Antisemitism Protection Act proposed in Michigan legislature
This includes the introduction of new legislation aimed at protecting people from antisemitism.
Today, three Democratic lawmakers introduced the Michigan Antisemitism Protection Act (MAPA), which amends the Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act by adding the official definition of antisemitism used by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance.
State Rep. Noah Arbit, from West Bloomfield, said the Act would help identify antisemitism.
'If adopted, the standard would assist relevant state authorities, agencies, and institutions to better identify and elevate potential cases of illegal discrimination against Jews in Michigan,' said Arbit.
However, Arbit, who is Jewish himself, says the problem of anti Semitism can't be solved by a simple bill.
'When it comes to this MAPA bill, or even the new hate crime laws, one thing is certain: they are not a cure-all. Anti-Jewish racism, like all racism, is a societal ill and a public health problem that we need to tackle as such,' said Arbit.
Lawmakers say they see complacency among the general public and a failure from public figures to fight hate. They say, if left unchecked, this, along with what they call 'youth radicalization,' will continue to lead to violent acts.
Some, like State Rep. Samantha Steckloff, are even worried for their safety.
'Every single one of us in the Jewish caucus has received a call from the FBI with credible threats to our life,' said Steckloff.
Arbit said both parties have failed to properly address hate against Jews.
'I don't think either party gets a passing grade here when it comes to fighting antisemitism. I would like to see both parties put a veritable, good-faith effort to improving what they are doing in terms of standing up for the Jewish communities across America,' said Arbit.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Fox News
15 minutes ago
- Fox News
Progressive Dem rep faces backlash for calling ICE 'Nazi thugs' while defending MS-13 gang member
A progressive Democratic state representative sparked controversy after referring to ICE agents as "Nazi Gestapo thugs" following an ICE operation in Providence, Rhode Island, that resulted in the arrest of a known MS-13 gang member. "The Nazi Gestapo ICE thugs kidnapped another of our neighbors in Providence this morning. This time on Alverson St.," wrote Rep. Enrique Sanchez in social media posts. "The ICE thugs damaged a couple of residents' cars as well. They think they are above the law. I strongly condemn this act of terror and will be demanding answers and seeking action tomorrow. I am tired of this s**t. Providence doesn't want ICE thugs in our city." The arrest in question was of Ivan Rene Mendoza Meza, a 27-year-old Honduran national illegally present in the U.S. and a self-admitted member of the violent MS-13 gang. ICE sources told Fox News that during the operation, Mendoza attempted to flee, causing a crash by striking ICE vehicles before running into his apartment. He was eventually surrounded and surrendered to agents. Mendoza was seen smirking in his arrest photo, seeming to be unfazed by his capture. Mendoza has a history of criminal activity, including fentanyl trafficking charges in Rhode Island. ICE Boston had previously lodged an immigration detainer against him following those charges in August 2023. However, the 6th District Court of Rhode Island declined to honor the detainer, releasing Mendoza without notifying ICE, forcing agents to locate and arrest him in the community. According to ICE Boston spokesperson James Covington, "Mendoza is a self-admitted member of MS-13 in Honduras and states he has committed crimes on behalf of the gang." ICE spokesperson Emily Covington criticized Sanchez's remarks: "Mr. Sanchez thinks so little of his community that he refers to ruthless MS-13 as his 'neighbors'? What say you, Providence? The only 'thugs' we see are the illegal terrorist gangbangers we are trying to remove from the neighborhoods of Providence." Mendoza originally entered the U.S. illegally near San Ysidro, California, in May 2019 and was quickly returned to Mexico. However, officials say he later re-entered the country unlawfully at an unknown time and place. Sanchez, who has strongly opposed immigration enforcement, taunted ICE agents on Sunday after a farmworker died from injuries sustained from a fall during an immigration enforcement raid on a California cannabis farm. "F*** ICE," Sanchez wrote. "Vallanse a la chingada ICE." "State Representative Enrique Sanchez (D), who was arrested for DUI earlier this year, calls ICE agents "Nazi Gestapo thugs" in an online rant after an MS-13 gang member facing fentanyl charges was arrested with a smile across his face," Libs of TikTok commented on Sanchez's statements. "Just Democrats supporting criminal alien gangs over American citizens." In 2023, Sanchez filed RI H5461, a bill to give illegal immigrants the right to vote in the state. However, the bill was tabled for further study a month after it was introduced.
Politico
20 minutes ago
- Politico
Rep. James Comer subpoenas Ghislaine Maxwell to testify next month
Speaker Mike Johnson is managing a delicate balance between appeasing antsy Republicans over the Jeffrey Epstein files and buying President Donald Trump time by shutting down the House early for August recess. The Louisiana Republican tried to quell dissent in a closed-door House GOP meeting Tuesday. He told members to stay united, arguing it would take time for the administration to release files that would also protect the names of Epstein's victims. But Republicans are getting impatient. In an Oversight subcommittee hearing Tuesday, lawmakers voted to compel the full committee to subpoena Epstein accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell. Oversight Chair James Comer (R-Ky.) later told reporters he had warned GOP leadership last week that if the Epstein files came up in his committee, most of his members would vote on the side of transparency. 'Everyone knew that,' Comer said, adding that his team will visit Maxwell in prison for the interview once they negotiate details with her attorneys. The saga has given Democrats just the platform they needed to land a successful blow on the White House. In her latest column, Rachael Bade outlines just how much the party has found its mojo in effectively hijacking the House and sticking it to Trump. Democratic efforts to further drive the MAGA wedge has legs beyond this week. The bipartisan bill led by Reps. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) and Ro Khanna (D-Calif.), which would compel the release of more files, could hit the floor as soon as lawmakers return in September. That means Republican leaders are bracing for Democrats to keep the Epstein issue hot during August recess. And some of their own members who are itching for an outlet acknowledge that five weeks off may not stop Johnson's headache. 'The Epstein issue has contributed to their desire to just get us out of town because they hope that the energy will dissipate,' Massie told reporters Tuesday. 'I doubt that's the case.' What else we're watching: — Dems' appropriations strategy: As the Senate continues working through appropriations bills, Democrats met Tuesday to discuss their demands ahead of a government shutdown deadline in September. The Democratic leaders emerged Tuesday with no specific ultimatums for Republicans but called for them to negotiate in good faith. — Senate's version of the CLARITY Act: Senate Banking Chair Tim Scott (R-S.C.) and Sens. Cynthia Lummis of Wyoming, Bill Hagerty of Tennessee and Bernie Moreno of Ohio released draft legislation Tuesday for a digital asset market structure overhaul. It's the Senate's version of the House's CLARITY Act, which passed the House on July 17 with support from 78 Democrats and would divvy up regulation of digital assets under the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. — More funding clawbacks: Republican leaders are in talks with the White House about a second rescissions package, after pushing through the first rescissions package last week. The package would include Education Department funding, which was first reported by the Daily Signal. House Majority Leader Steve Scalise did not disclose the specifics of upcoming rescissions but told POLITICO talks were well underway. Meredith Lee Hill, Hailey Fuchs, Jasper Goodman, Juan Perez Jr. and Eli Stokols contributed to this report.
The Hill
42 minutes ago
- The Hill
These 11 Republicans are backing the Khana-Massie Epstein measure
A bipartisan effort to force a binding House vote on releasing the 'Epstein files' has picked up Republican support, though just how many in the GOP ultimately support the measure won't be seen at least until the lower chamber returns from its August recess. The bipartisan bill from Reps. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) and Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) is one of two measures related to the Epstein files, which have effectively stymied the entire chamber and prompted Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) to send members home early. It has the 11 Republican and nine Democratic co-sponsors as of Wednesday. Massie and Khanna have vowed to file a discharge petition to bypass House leadership and force their bill to the floor with 218 signatures. Discharge petitions are rarely successful, and seldom used by members of the majority. But Massie and Khanna's could be successful if all 11 GOP co-sponsors sign on with all Democrats. It would not be ready for a vote until September due to procedural rules. The measure would require Attorney General Pam Bondi to make public 'in a searchable and downloadable format' all 'unclassified records, documents, communications and investigative materials in the possession' of the Justice Department (DOJ) related to the late sex offender and disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein. Massie has led the charge from the GOP side and taken heat from Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), who on Tuesday said he was baffled about Massie's motivations. The House will now leave town Thursday, a day earlier than scheduled, for its recess. Democrats have hammered Johnson for avoiding any summer votes on the Epstein bills. Here are the Republicans who are backing the measure. Lauren Boebert Rep. Lauren Boebert (Colo.), a fierce ally of President Trump, was one of the first lawmakers to call for a special counsel to investigate the government's handling of the files. 'People are frustrated. We want to know if there's more information,' the Colorado lawmaker said on NewsNation last week. Boebert was among the lawmakers who celebrated the Trump administration's move in February to reveal what it claimed were the Epstein files — a move that ended up disappointing many observers who hoped for new revelations. In 2020, while Boebert was running for her first term in Congress, she appeared to indulge a conspiracy theory that Epstein did not die by suicide. 'Is 2020 a set up so we all forget Epstein didn't kill himself?' she wrote then on X, adding a chin-scratching emoji. The medical examiner ruled that Epstein, who was in New York City jail awaiting trial, died by suicide in 2019. The DOJ and the FBI reaffirmed the cause of his death in an unnamed memo earlier this month, where officials also said that the disgraced financier did not keep the so-called 'client list.' Jeff Van Drew Rep. Jeff Van Drew (N.J.) switched from the Democratic Party to the GOP in 2020 over Trump's first impeachment. The New Jersey Republican, who represents a South Jersey district that includes Atlantic City, has not commented extensively on the Epstein files. 'The American people deserve full transparency,' Van Drew said in a post on X announcing his support. Marjorie Taylor Greene Epstein is one of the rare issues on which Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (Ga.), one of the most prominent MAGA Republicans in Congress, has not been in lock-step with the president. The Georgia lawmaker has warned that voters could turn on Trump over the controversy. 'If you tell the base of people, who support you, of deep state treasonous crimes, election interference, blackmail, and rich powerful elite evil cabals, then you must take down every enemy of The People,' she wrote on X Monday. If not, 'The base will turn and there's no going back.' Greene celebrated Trump's move to ask to unseal grand jury transcripts related to Epstein last week, and derided Democratic outrage on the issue as 'fake.' Eric Burlison Rep. Eric Burlison (Mo.), a two-term congressman, has blamed both the DOJ and the 'deep state' for hiding files related to Epstein. He expressed skepticism early on about the DOJ-FBI memo, as well as their release of hours of surveillance footage from outside Epstein's cell. The footage is missing about one minute around midnight, which Bondi has said was due to standard resetting of the prison's security cameras every night. 'What is a reasonable person supposed to conclude when they're first told the footage doesn't exist, only to see it later released, showing a different cell and missing a full minute?' Burlison wrote on X the day the footage was released. Tim Burchett Rep. Tim Burchett (Tenn.) successfully pushed Tuesday for a subcommittee of the House Oversight Committee to subpoena Maxwell, Epstein's longtime associate who is serving a lengthy prison sentence. 'It's about to get real. I just did this,' he wrote on X after moving to issue the subpoena. Burchett has also criticized the Democrats, who celebrated the subpoena, for not caring about Epstein until Trump had been encircled in the controversy. 'If Democrats were serious about this issue, they wouldn't have waited four years to bring it up,' he said on CNN last week. Cory Mills Rep. Cory Mills (Fla.) has not yet publicly commented on his decision to co-sponsor the resolution. He garnered headlines for a different reason last week after news broke of court filings alleging that he owed $85,000 in back rent at his D.C. apartment. Mills blamed an online processing error and has since said the debt is settled. Mills was previously a Trump appointee on the Defense Business Board. He represents a coastal district in north-central Florida, centered on the town of New Smyrna Beach. Max Miller Rep. Max Miller (R-Ohio) said last week he signed on the petition because he believes in 'transparency and delivering the truth' to the American people. Miller previously was Trump's senior advisor during his first White House term and was in the Marine Corps Reserves for six years. Also in recent but unrelated news, Miller said last month he was run off the road by a 'deranged man' who was waving a Palestinian flag and hurled death threats before driving off. Eli Crane Rep. Eli Crane (R-Ariz.), a staunch Trump defender and member of the conservative Freedom Caucus, announced he would co-sign Massie's measure last week, writing 'Add me. Transparency matters.' The former Navy SEAL, who sits on the subcommittee on border security enforcement, told Axios 'that's been something that I've supported from day one … I think there needs to be transparency, and I'm glad to see that this is bipartisan because it should be.' Nancy Mace Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) has linked her support for Epstein transparency to her own alleged experience with sexual violence. In February, she accused four men, including her former fiancé, of a range of sex crimes. All four men have denied accusations. 'I've always been an advocate for women and children. The Jeffrey Epstein case is no different. I want to see arrests. I want to see any one who raped underage girls in handcuffs and behind bars,' Mace, who is mulling a run for South Carolina governor, said in a X post last week. 'No more passes for predators,' she added. 'May God bless President Trump – he's never let us down before!' Mace said in an interview that she was in favor of appointing a special counsel to probe who might be involved in trafficking girls and young women, along with investigating if anyone destroyed evidence. 'If the Justice Department can be more transparent on this, it would be best for the country. People don't trust the government, and we haven't given them much reason to over the past few years,' Mace told The New York Times last week. Keith Self Rep. Keith Self (R-Texas), a military veteran, said during an interview on Wednesday that the bipartisan Massie-Khanna measure will 'easily pass' the lower chamber if it comes to a full vote. 'We want to expose the criminals, we want to protect the victims. Recent reports said there were 1000 victims, we need to figure out who perpetrated the crimes against those victims and this seems to be the only way that we're going to get to do it,' Self told Newsmax. Self noted that the release of the Epstein files has widespread support among the American public and predicted that the petition will secure 218 votes in the House. 'But again, this is an issue of justice. It's an issue of transparency and frankly, accountability of the government. The American people want to see a government that is accountable to our employers, who are the citizens, the voters of the United States,' the Texas Republican said. 'It is as simple as that.' Tom Barrett Rep. Tom Barrett (R-Mich.) said last week there are too many 'questions and not enough answers' about the Epstein files. 'I agree that it's time to release them, which is why I put my name on a resolution to force their release and give the American people the transparency they deserve,' Barrett wrote on X. Democrats At least nine Democrats have signed onto the measure, as the party looks to fuel GOP angst over the Epstein files and force tough votes on the issue. The co-sponsors are: Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (N.Y.), Rashida Tlaib (Mich.), Jim McGovern (Mass.), Hank Johnson (Ga.), Jamie Raskin (Md.), Ryan Patrick (N.Y.), Debbie Dingell (Mich.), Joe Neguse (Colo.), Nancy Pelosi (Calif.) and Nydia Velazquez (N.Y.).
