Rep. Ruben Gallego mum on Harvard antisemitism furor as alma mater supports embattled president

U.S. Senate hopeful Ruben Gallego has remained silent about congressional testimony last week involving elite university presidents — including Harvard, his alma mater — that was roundly criticized as failing to condemn antisemitism amid Israel’s war with Hamas.

The Dec. 5 hearing before the House Education and the Workforce Committee drew scrutiny for seemingly rote answers to emotionally charged questions about whether those calling for genocide against Jews violated the schools’ conduct policies.

The White House pushed back against the responses, and the president of the University of Pennsylvania stepped down after her testimony fell flat. Harvard’s governing board met Monday to weigh the future of its president, Claudine Gay. She will remain, the board decided, but the controversy hasn't faded.

Gallego, D-Ariz., has steered clear of an issue that has echoed for days and even was mocked on NBC's “Saturday Night Live."

His campaign declined Monday to discuss the matter. Meanwhile, Kari Lake, the Republican front-runner in Arizona's Senate race, has ripped Gallego.

Gallego “refuses to condemn violent antisemitism from his Democrat colleagues in Congress and his Alma Mater, Harvard,” Lake wrote Saturday on social media. “He’s a coward and a disgrace to Jewish Arizonans. Ruben associates with radicals because he IS a radical.”

On Wednesday, a spokesperson for Gallego's Senate campaign didn't address Gay's comments but said he opposes intolerance.

"Ruben has been crystal clear in his condemnation of antisemitism in all forms," Hannah Goss said in a statement. "Meanwhile, Kari Lake continues to align herself with people like (white nationalist) Nick Fuentes and perhaps Arizona's most prominent white nationalist, (state Sen. Wendy Rogers, R-Flagstaff)."

Incumbent U.S. Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, I-Ariz., whose seat Gallego and Lake are seeking, seemed to allude to the issue of antisemitism on Sunday in a social media post.

“During Hanukkah this year, I’m thinking about the resilience of the men and women of the Jewish faith,” she wrote. “We continue to stand steadfast and unwavering against all forms of antisemitism — it has no place in our society.”

Sinema has not formally announced whether she will seek a second six-year term.

Pinal County Sheriff Mark Lamb, another Republican in the Senate race, did not appear to have commented on the antisemitism controversy based on a review of his usual social media pages.

Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel killed an estimated 1,200 people and led to an Israeli declaration of war that has killed more than 17,000 people in the Palestinian-held Gaza Strip, according to Gaza health officials.

It largely galvanized U.S. support for Israel, but also led to many spinoff debates, ranging from Palestinian statehood to antisemitism, especially after a surge in hateful conduct in the two months since the attack.

Days after the attack, Gallego called for additional federal funding to protect the Jewish community in America from hate crimes and domestic terrorism. Gallego has weighed in on other aspects of the Israeli-Hamas war.

Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., the only Palestinian American in Congress, created an uproar last month when she voted against a measure condemning Hamas and reaffirming more than $3 billion in aid to Israel.

She also had a social media post that included the phrase “from the river to the sea,” which is widely understood as a call for a Palestinian state in the area that now belongs to Israel.

Congress censured Tlaib days afterward, something Gallego voted against.

Even so, he issued a statement condemning his colleague for her remarks.

“Rep. Tlaib’s comments are reprehensible,” he said to Jewish Insider. “No amount of explaining detracts from the facts that the phase means eradicating Israel. Securing peace and saving civilian lives will be done only through the returning of hostages and the elimination of Hamas.”

Gallego, a Marine Corps veteran who fought in the Iraq War, referenced his time in Cambridge, Massachusetts, in a social media post the day after the Hamas attack.

“When I was at Harvard during the 9/11 terrorist attacks no one responded by saying America deserved it,” he said. “I’ve fought terrorists. Terrorism is never the fault of the victims. It’s not the fault of the festival goers having fun, or the innocent babies being slaughtered.”

In perhaps the most memorable exchange from last week's Education and the Workforce Committee hearing, Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., pointedly asked Gay about Harvard's harassment policies.

“At Harvard, does calling for the genocide of Jews violate Harvard’s rules of bullying and harassment?” Stefanik asked.

“It can be, depending on the context,” Gay said.

Republicans were instantly revolted by the answers they heard from the university presidents. Democrats joined the chorus of disapproval.

“It’s unbelievable that this needs to be said: calls for genocide are monstrous and antithetical to everything we represent as a country,” the White House said in a statement last week.

“Any statements that advocate for the systematic murder of Jews are dangerous and revolting — and we should all stand firmly against them, on the side of human dignity and the most basic values that unite us as Americans.”

Gay apologized afterward in an interview with the school’s newspaper.

“I am sorry. Words matter,” she told the Harvard Crimson. “When words amplify distress and pain, I don’t know how you could feel anything but regret.”

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Ruben Gallego is mum on Harvard and embattled president Claudine Gay