Democrat Rep. Ritchie Torres Issues Correction for ‘Mistakenly’ Voting Against College Antisemitism Bill

Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-NY) claims he “mistakenly” voted against a resolution to condemn sympathizers of Hamas and other antisemitic terrorist organizations on college campuses, and he has now issued a “correction.”

The House approved the resolution Thursday in a 396-23 vote, taking aim at the major colleges and universities that have become hotbeds of antisemitism and terror support following the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel and the subsequent conflict between the two players.

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House Resolution 798, introduced by Rep. Burgess Owens (R-UT), declared that the support of Hamas and Hezbollah on campuses “may lead to the creation of a hostile environment for Jewish students, faculty, and staff.”

The measure calls on university administrators to condemn the rising Jewish hatred on their campuses and to ensure that Jewish faculty and students can exercise free speech without intimidation, reports Fox News.

“It is the height of hypocrisy that the same colleges advocating for diversity, equity, and inclusion are silent as hateful acts of antisemitism spread like wildfire on their campuses,” said Owens in a statement following the bill’s approval, continuing:

The failure to promptly condemn these demonstrations glorifying terrorism is shameful and beyond moral reproach, and it has left Jewish students fearful for their lives. Today, the people’s House sent a clear message to the nation: We firmly reject evil, we strongly support Israel, and we will root out the rotten ideologies found in our higher education system.

When the list of the 23 representatives who voted against the measure was publicized that Thursday, Torres took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to set the record straight.

“On the House floor, I mistakenly voted against a measure condemning campus antisemitism,” he wrote. “As a visible and vocal advocate against antisemitism on college campuses, especially in the wake of October 7th, I have submitted a correction for the record.”

“I have no use for pro-Hamas protestors, and I despise them with every fiber of my being,” he added.

In a follow-up post, he accused the “far right” of attacking him for his beliefs on the attack on Israel.

“Anyone who thinks that I refuse to condemn apologists for Hamas is willfully ignoring everything I have said and done in the past three weeks (as well as long before then),” he wrote.

“The far right will take their cheap shots at me.”

In another clarifying post, Torres expressed his personal views on a two-state solution for Israelis and Palestinians. 

“The far left rejects a Jewish State. The far right rejects a Palestinian State. I reject the extremes in favor of a two state solution,” the lawmaker said.

“I have [a] dream of a future Middle East where the children of Abraham—Jews, Christians, and Muslims; Jews and Arabs; Israelis and Palestinians—coexist in peace and prosperity,” he continued.  

“History tells us that even an improbable peace can be achieved. Know hope.”

Other lawmakers who voted against the measure include “Squad” members Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), Jamaal Bowman (D-NY), Ilhan Omar (D-MN), Ayanna Pressley (D-MA) and Rashida Tlaib (D-MI).

Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) was the only Republican to vote against the resolution, citing “free speech.”

“Free speech means protecting speech you don’t like, not just speech you do like,” Massie wrote on X to explain the rationale behind his vote. “Also, who defines antisemitism?”