During the Israeli crisis, dead-weight Republicans lie, criticize, and eat barbecue

Once again, Republican politicians have betrayed their long-stated principles and engage in the very behavior they publicly condemn.

For context: Republicans in both the Senate and House—including former Speaker Kevin McCarthy—have refused to unite behind the sitting president during a crisis (a standard they famously imposed on Americans during the Bush presidency), excoriating Joe Biden for “eating barbecue” as the conflict between Israel and the terrorist organization Hamas escalated.

At the same time, ostensibly to address their need to elect a new Speaker, House Republicans convened a closed door, two-day meeting. During this first meeting on Monday, what did they eat? You guessed it: barbecue.

To be clear, no one should be surprised or particularly care that government officials and politicians eat in times of crisis. The problem is only the cynical double standard created by Republicans and wielded against Democrats.

Despite what Republicans claim, President Biden has been actively engaged in monitoring the crisis in Israel since Hamas launched rockets into southern Israeli cities Saturday morning. This engagement includes:

• Repeatedly speaking with Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu;

• Pledging U.S. intelligence to assisting Israel;

• Speaking with King Abdullah of Jordan;

• Issuing a strong public statement of support for Israel;

• Checking in on two U.S. Congressmen who were in Israel at the time of the attack;

• Regularly convening with his national security team for updates;

• Convening the leaders of the United Kingdom, France, Germany, and Italy—before issuing a joint declaration of support for Israel;

• Pledging U.S. intelligence to assisting Israel;

Meanwhile… the House of Representatives is in official recess thanks exclusively to last week’s Republican chaos. Because of the GOP, one chamber of our most powerful branch—the legislature—is literally unavailable to the President, the American people, and Israel during this conflict.

Moreover, because House Republicans politically decapitated themselves, the only House leader who has been briefed on the crisis is Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries.

There are no easy solutions to what’s going on between Israel, Hamas, and Palestine. But what’s absolutely certain is that the only political party attempting to manage the crisis in good faith is the Democratic Party.

Republicans should be condemned for both their failure to meet their obligation as a governing partner of the U.S. government and the egregious, shameless double standard they attempt to impose on everyone else.