Voters are split on whether it’s acceptable for Israel to deny visas to Reps. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) and Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.), according to a Hill-HarrisX poll released on Wednesday.
The survey showed 53 percent of respondents believe it would be unacceptable for Israel to deny visas to the two freshman Democratic lawmakers, compared to 47 percent of those who think it would acceptable.
The question over whether Israel should deny visas to the two congresswomen was starkly divided along partisan lines. Seventy-seven percent of Republicans thought such a move would be acceptable, compared to just 24 percent of Democrats who said the same.
The survey comes less than a week after Israel announced that it would deny entry into their country to both Omar and Tlaib during a planned overseas trip, citing their support for the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement.
The decision was announced just moments after President Trump tweeted that it would show “great weakness” for Israel to allow the two lawmakers into the country.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued a statement later that day in defense of his government’s decision, saying Israeli law prohibits entry into the country for individuals who support a boycott of the country.
Omar and Tlaib, who are the first two Muslim American women elected into Congress, responded by holding a press conference to denounce the move.
During the conference on Monday, Tlaib became teary-eyed as she spoke about her family’s experiences in the West Bank.
Omar, meanwhile, suggested that lawmakers should reconsider annual U.S. aid to the country after they were barred from entering.
Trump showed no signs of backing down in light of their remarks, instead opting to double-down on his attacks.
“Sorry, I don’t buy Rep. Tlaib’s tears,” Trump tweeted a day after the conference. “I have watched her violence, craziness and, most importantly, WORDS, for far too long. Now tears?”
The remarks are part of Trump’s ongoing feud with four progressive freshman congressman known as “the Squad,” which includes Democratic Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (N.Y.), Ayanna Pressley (Mass.), Ilhan Omar (Minn.) and Rashida Tlaib (Mich.).
Trump came under fire last month for telling the four lawmakers, all women of color, to “go back” to where they came from, even though all four are U.S. citizens and all but Omar were born in the U.S.
The Hill-HarrisX survey was conducted online among 2,002 registered voters from August 18-30. The sampling margin of error of this poll is plus or minus 2.2 percentage points.
—Tess Bonn
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