Joe Kaufman is a Shillman Journalism Fellow at the David Horowitz Freedom Center and the Chairman of the Joe Kaufman Security Initiative. He was the 2014, 2016 and 2018 Republican Nominee for U.S. House of Representatives (Florida-CD23).
Last month, Rasha Mubarak, Finance Director for US Representative Rashida Tlaib, hosted a podcast, where she interviewed Muslim activist Sumaya Awad about a new book Awad had just co-edited. During the show, amidst verbal attacks against America from the two, Awad provided examples of Palestinian entities that are Socialist in nature, specifically the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), members of which Mubarak promotes on social media, and the PFLP spinoff, DFLP. Both groups have been involved in mass murders of Israeli civilians. Question: How could treason and terror coming from a congressional staffer ever be tolerated?
Mubarak’s podcast, ‘Unbought Power,’ was created to bash the Jewish state. Awad’s book, ‘Palestine: A Socialist Introduction,’ with its cover image of the full map of Israel, satisfies both this and Mubarak’s other obsession, Socialism. When Mubarak asked Awad how “Palestine” can connect to Socialism in “our future,” Awad mentioned two terrorist groups. She stated, “I think there were different movements across the Middle East and certainly in Palestine that posited Socialist or Communist ideas. In Palestine, there’s a number of groups. People usually mostly know about the PFLP and the DFLP.”
The PFLP is a group that has been designated as a terrorist organization by the United States, Canada, Japan and the European Union. It has been involved in multiple plane hijackings and suicide bombings targeting Israeli civilians. Its murder victims include over 20 US citizens. The DFLP or Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine is a PFLP offshoot. The group is infamous for a 1974 terrorist attack it perpetrated on a school in Ma’alot, Israel, killing 25 hostages, 22 of whom were children.
Does any of this bother Mubarak? Not in the least. She describes these terrorist organizations to her guest, just as their namesakes, as “liberation movements.” For Mubarak, killing Israeli or American Jewish civilians in the cause of “Palestine” is not an evil act, but a means to liberation – liberation meaning all of Israel, like the cover graphic on Awad’s book or the Israel map pendant resting on a chain around Mubarak’s neck – and so she lauds and defends the killers.
On March 24th, three days after taping her podcast, Mubarak retweeted a PFLP video honoring former PFLP spokesman Ghassan Khanafani. On the video, Khanafani is adamant about the fact that his group refuses to engage in any peace talks with Israelis, even if it means saving lives. He said it would amount to “capitulation.” The tweet refers to Khanafani as a “martyr.” Khanafani was assassinated by the Israeli Mossad, following the May 1972 massacre that took place at Israel’s Lod Airport, an event that left 26 innocents dead, including 17 Christian pilgrims from Puerto Rico. Khanafani claimed responsibility for the brutal attack, on behalf of the PFLP.
On March 30th, Mubarak complained about Israel’s re-arrest of PFLP terrorist Majd Barbar, who had just been released from prison after spending 20 years behind bars. Mubarak wrote, “Israel hates to see that no matter what: Palestinians will be resistant, find joy & channel our pain.” One day earlier, Mubarak had retweeted a festive video of Barbar being welcomed by his family. Yet, much like her honoring of cold-hearted militant Ghassan Khanafani on her social media, Mubarak ignored the fact that, in 2001, Barbar had been convicted of forming a terrorist cell in Jerusalem, the reason for him serving his 20 year sentence.
Mubarak has a long track record of glorifying Palestinian terrorists. At the end of the 2014 Israel-Gaza Conflict, along with photos of a jubilant Hamas, Mubarak tweeted, “Thousands of people celebrating in the streets of Gaza for the victory. Alhamdulillah. #VictoryForGaza.” In June and July 2020, Mubarak posted memorials onto her social media for car-ramming terrorist Ahmed Erekat, who was shot and killed after attempting to run over a female Israeli border officer, at a checkpoint east of Jerusalem. And this past November, Mubarak promoted then-jailed Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) leader Maher al-Akhras with a message to free all like him.
Not only does Mubarak target Israel with her venom, but she also goes after the US, the place that she and much of her family reside and prosper economically in. During her interview of the self-avowed Palestinian Socialist Sumaya Awad, both host and guest repeatedly took aim at America, referring to her as “imperialistic” and “white supremacist.” Mubarak stated about the US, “This country… is a violent country. Its conception has always been not looking out for people or the masses. It’s white supremacy.”
One would think that someone who hates America and supports terrorists as much as Mubarak does would have no place in local or national politics, but that is not the case with Mubarak. As previously mentioned, Mubarak is the Finance Director for US Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib. According to Tlaib, Mubarak helped her raise over $3 million for her recent re-election campaign. In fact, Tlaib has discussed Mubarak possibly serving in office, herself. She stated to Mubarak, this past December, “But Rasha, even like us, right now, even if you became elected – and one day you’ll run – even if you do, do you stop what you’re doing? No.”
It is true that Representative Tlaib, like Mubarak, has an extreme hatred for the Jewish state. However, Tlaib is not the only political entity to embrace Mubarak. Mubarak is currently the National Committeewoman for the Florida Young Democrats (FYD). A large photo containing her in it can be found right on the FYD website homepage. And when an event was shut down by the Florida Democratic Party, in October 2020, due to Mubarak’s participation in it, FYD defended her, calling on the party “to apologize for [its] discriminatory and racist behavior.” The group referenced what it believed to be “her vocal support for Palestinian human rights issues.”
What FYD fails to comprehend is that Mubarak’s support is not for the human rights of Palestinians, but for the right of select Palestinian groups – what she labels “liberation movements” – to use horrific acts of terror on Israeli men, women and children. This is evidenced in the fact that, time and time again, Mubarak has pushed the notion that Israel, a sovereign nation, has no right to self-defense.
The Democratic Party – and not just a small part of it – needs to end its love affair with Rasha Mubarak. By failing to do so, the party is not just embracing Mubarak, but it is as well embracing all the terror and bigotry that goes along with her.
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