23 Republicans who voted against the anti-discrimination resolution initiated by the Democratic party have dropped their statements on the decision they made Thursday, with most stating that the measure failed to address Rep. Ilhan Omar's comments earlier.
Earlier in the week, Omar was put under fire for comments that translated as anti-Semitic for some politicians and political experts. This resulted to House Resolution 183 that denounced any form of bigotry.
In a tweet, Rep. Paul Gosar of Arizona said he opposed the measure since it "purported to condemn speech that is not an issue." He added that the resolution did not mention any of Rep. Omar's anti-Jewish comments.
Rep. Ken Buck of Colorado said the Democratic party produced a "watered-down" measure while Rep. Andy Biggs of Arizona echoed Buck's statements by saying the resolution was "virtually nothing."
Other Republicans who voted against the Democratic resolution chimed in. Rep. Greg Steube of Florida said in a statement on Twitter that his reason for opposing was due to the Democrats seemingly choosing to ignore Rep. Omar's reported anti-Semitic remarks.
According to Michigan Advance, U.S. House Minority Whip Steve Scalise explained that many members of the Republican party members felt that the resolution did not deliver its supposed mission of addressing Rep. Omar's statements and clarifying the party's position on anti-hate and other forms of bigotry.
Following the resolution's approval by a 407-23 vote, Rep. Omar heaped praise on the House for uniting against hate comments, white supremacy, and racism. She previously apologized for remarks she made derided as anti-Semitic.
Before the vote was made on Thursday, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of California pointed out that the resolution centered on "these forms of hatred," Bloomberg reported. Pelosi further explained that Rep. Omar's comments could have been made without a clear understanding of how her words would affect others.
An earlier version of House Resolution 183 was deemed narrow in wording that condemned anti-Semitism and was rejected by the Democrats. Both the first document and the final resolution did not mention Rep. Omar by name.
On the other hand, the outlet noted that part of the resolution appears to have been directly aimed at a statement Rep. Omar made in the previous week. Pelosi has reiterated that the Democrats are not "policing" statements made by party members.
The earlier version of House Resolution 183 has also been met with criticism with members of the Congressional Black Caucus questioned why Democrats were condemning one of their own. They argued that POTUS Donald Trump and other Republicans previously promoted bigotry.
