PITTSBURGH – Republican congressional candidate James Hayes today denounced Congresswoman Summer Lee’s outrageous vote against a resolution celebrating the bond between the United States and Israel.
Calling the vote “outrageous and immoral,” Hayes said Lee’s vote strips away the coded language and lets the Pittsburgh region see that their congresswoman is willing to abandon a fellow democracy on the very anniversary of the creation of a nation founded to protect Jews in the wake of the world’s most horrific act of the Holocaust.
“Does Summer Lee not know why Israel exists? Does she not care?” Hayes said. “There can be no doubt that Summer Lee stands with antisemites like Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib. All pretense has been cast aside by this despicable, hateful vote.”
The House passed the resolution with more than 400 votes in favor. Members of the so-called “Squad” of far-left legislators, of which Lee is a member, cast most of the 19 votes against the Jewish state.
Hayes, a trained economist who has spent a career at the top of major corporations, as well as a position with the Federal Reserve Bank, is running as a pro-democracy, pro-Israel, and pro-common decency candidate.
“I know that religious values and freedom from bigotry are vital to any functioning democracy. To abandon the world’s Jews in the face of mounting antisemitism is troubling. To do so even as jurors are being selected for a trial in the single, largest antisemitic attack in U.S. history — one that took place in Ms. Lee’s district — sends an unmistakable and frightening message,” Hayes said.
James Hayes is a business executive with a doctorate in business, running to challenge incumbent Summer Lee in next year’s congressional elections. Hayes held top positions with Fortune 500 companies as well as a six-year stint with the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond, Va. A native Pennsylvanian, Hayes is the son of a union steelworker who was among those displaced by the massive deindustrialization of the 1980s. He credits the United Steelworkers of America for providing the scholarship money that first sent him to college. He describes himself as a free-market advocate opposed to the radical economic experiments and anti-business activism proposed by Lee and her fellow “squad” members. You can review James Hayes’ resume and more details on his goals for the 12th District by visiting his website: jameshayesforpa.com