Should the House Condemn the January 15, 2022 Anti-Semitic Attack at Congregation Beth Israel in Colleyville, Texas? (H. Res. 881)

What is H. Res. 881?

(Updated March 20, 2022)

This resolution would express the House’s condemnation of the terrorist attack on Congregation Beth Israel in Colleyville, Texas on January 15, 2022. It would also express support for the community affected by the attack, commend the actions of law enforcement and emergency responders, and reaffirm a commitment to combating hate, bigotry, anti-Semitism, and violence against Jewish Americans.

As a simple resolution, this legislation is non-binding and wouldn’t advance beyond the House if adopted.

Argument in favor

The House should take a strong stand against anti-Semitism like that which motivated the attack on Congregation Beth Israel. This resolution’s passage would express the House’s support for the Jewish American community and its support for law enforcement officials who help keep communities safe.

Argument opposed

This resolution is an attempt to advance a baseless accusation that the Biden administration is not taking anti-Semitism and anti-American terrorism seriously politicizes this issue unnecessarily. While the House should support Jewish Americans and to condemn anti-Semitism, it should do so via a resolution that does not have such partisan overtones.

Impact

Domestic terrorism; anti-Semitism; Colleyville, Texas; and the House.

Cost of H. Res. 881

A CBO cost estimate is unavailable.

Additional Info

In-Depth: Sponsoring Rep. Beth Van Duyne (R-TX), who represents Colleyville, introduced this resolution to recognize the heroism shown by hostages and first responders in the January 15, 2022 terrorist attack on Congregration Beth Israel in Colleyville, Texas. In a press release, she said:

“​​[W]e witnessed a heinous attack not only on our community in North Texas, but on the entire Jewish community. Thanks to the heroic actions of local and federal law enforcement – and of Rabbi Charlie Cytron-Walker – the four hostages taken Saturday are now with their families. I am introducing this resolution today to not only condemn this act of hate, but to bring light to the antisemitism plaguing our country so that this may never happen again." 

Rep. Van Duyne further accused the Biden administration of overlooking the threat from people like the Colleyville attacker in favor of focusing on far right-wing domestic terrorism:

“There is a lot of hate for Americans around the world and by only concentrating on other Americans, I think this administration is completely missing the boat we’ve got a lot of enemies out there.”

President Joe Biden called the Colleyville hostage crisis an “act of terror” and praised local and federal law enforcement officers who helped resolve the standoff.

This legislation has 366 bipartisan House cosponsors, including 189 Republicans and 177 Democrats.

Of Note: On January 15, 2022, the Congregation Beth Israel in Colleyville, Texas experienced a terrorist act in which four worshippers were taken hostage for 11 hours. The perpetrator, a British citizen originally from Pakistan, was armed with a pistol and demanded the release of an alleged al Qaeda operative who is a Pakistani national imprisoned in nearby Fort Worth for attempted murder and other charges. One hostage was released after six hours, and the other three escaped 11 hours into the standoff, at which point the FBI Hostage Rescue Team entered the synagogue and fatally shot the perpetrator.

Media:

• Sponsoring Rep. Beth Van Duyne (R-TX) Press Release
• CBS DFW

Summary by Lorelei Yang

(Photo Credit: iStockphoto.com / Andrii Koval)