WASHINGTON – Western Pennsylvania’s 12th District was represented during Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s address to Congress Wednesday – but not by its elected member of Congress.
Anti-Israel Rep. Summer Lee, who has endorsed terrorist group Hamas’s call for a ceasefire and sided with antisemitic protesters, boycotted the speech. She has done the same for other Jewish speakers, including Israeli President Isaac Herzog.
Instead, Republican congressional nominee James Hayes, a supporter of Israel, attended as part of the spectator’s gallery after being invited by Pennsylvania Congressman G.T. Thompson.
Hayes praised Netanyahu’s speech for what he called “its clarifying quality—words that, once again, make it clear that Israel is our ally and that those who would destroy America’s alliance with the Jewish state would, by their abandonment, destroy the Jewish people.”
A supporter of Israel, Hayes expressed anger at Lee’s boycott.
“Once again, Summer Lee’s hatred for the Jewish state and its people has embarrassed the people of Allegheny and Westmoreland counties,” Hayes said. “She has kept company with congressional antisemites and worked unceasingly against America’s only democratic ally in the Middle East.”
In remarks prior to Netanyahu’s address, Rep. Lee took to the floor to denounce the congressional invitation and to repeat accusations of racism by the United States, attempting to tie it to American support for Israel.
“Years from now,” she said, “this body will be ashamed of its actions.”
Hayes today said the shame should instead reside with Lee and her anti-Israel colleagues, including Rep. Rashida Tlaib, who sat throughout the speech, while holding a protest sign.
Lee’s poorly concealed antisemitism has attracted increasing notice since she was forced to abandon plans to address the annual Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR) at a gala that featured speakers who endorsed the Oct. 7 terrorist attack by Hamas, one of whom described Israelis as “demons” who “cover their horns.”
Lee said she canceled her speech before CAIR, “to prevent the Muslin community from being the target of any more politically motivated Islamophobia.”
Hayes said he hopes to meet with Jewish leaders at home to discuss how to promote U.S. policies that strengthen Israel’s security and ensure the safe return of the dozens of people still held hostage by Hamas—a priority he will pursue when he takes office in January.
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
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