Democratic Representative Ro Khanna has collected almost 50 signatures on a petition of lawmakers urging the Trump administration to acknowledge the State of Palestine.
Since the letter was first reported early last month, dozens of House Democrats have signed on, and it now bears the names of 46 representatives, or more than one-fifth of the party’s House members.
“Just as the lives of Palestinians must be immediately protected, so too must their rights as a people and nation urgently be acknowledged and upheld,” the letter states, according to The Guardian.
Khanna says he hopes to have more than 50 before it is delivered to the White House on Friday. His office says he is accepting signatories until Friday at 9 a.m.
“This week, the UK, France, Canada, and Australia officially recognized Palestinian statehood,” Khanna said in a statement. “We cannot be isolated from the rest of the free world. We must stand up for the dignity and rights of the Palestinian people. That is why I am pushing for the US to join in recognizing Palestinian statehood.”
The following are the 46 House Democrats who have signed onto the letter as of Thursday at 4 p.m. ET, per Khanna’s office:
- Becca Balint — VT
- Donald Beyer — VA
- André Carson — IN
- Greg Casar — TX
- Joaquin Castro — TX
- Judy Chu — CA
- Danny Davis — IL
- Madeleine Dean — PA
- Diana DeGette — CO
- Christopher Deluzio — PA
- Mark DeSaulnier — CA
- Maxine Dexter — OR
- Lloyd Doggett — TX
- Veronica Escobar — TX
- Dwight Evans — PA
- Bill Foster — IL
- Maxwell Frost — FL
- John Garamendi — CA
- Jesús García — IL
- Sylvia Garcia — TX
- Al Green — TX
- Val Hoyle — OR
- Jared Huffman — CA
- Jonathan Jackson — IL
- Sara Jacobs — CA
- Pramila Jayapal — WA
- Henry Johnson — GA
- Marcy Kaptur — OH
- Ro Khanna — CA
- Zoe Lofgren — CA
- Stephen Lynch — MA
- Betty McCollum — MN
- James McGovern — MA
- Chellie Pingree — ME
- Mark Pocan — WI
- Mike Quigley — IL
- Emily Randall — WA
- Mary Gay Scanlon — PA
- Janice Schakowsky — IL
- Bennie Thompson — MS
- Mike Thompson — CA
- Jill Tokuda — HI
- Paul Tonko — NY
- Nydia Velázquez — NY
- Maxine Waters — CA
- Bonnie Watson Coleman — NJ
As the destruction and humanitarian crisis wrought on Gaza by Israel draws increased international scrutiny, 10 countries recognized Palestinian statehood in the past week, bringing the total to 157 of 193 U.N. member states.
“We encourage the governments of other countries that have yet to recognize Palestinian statehood, including the United States, to do so as well,” Khanna’s letter states. An August Reuters/Ipsos poll found that most Americans, 58 percent, agree. Trump, meanwhile, has dismissed recognizing Palestinian statehood, claiming it would be a “reward to Hamas.”
The post A List of Every House Democrat Calling on Trump to Recognize Palestine appeared first on New Republic.
