Censuring Representative Brian Mast.

Madam Speaker, pursuant to clause 2(a)(1) of rule IX, I rise to give notice of my intention to raise a question of the privileges of the House.

The form of the resolution is as follows:

H. Res. 846 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 million 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 Brian Mast be censured.