Jewish Democrats Call for Hearing on Violations of Terrorism Sanctions and Anti-Semitism in Case X

A group of 17 Jewish House Democrats on Friday called on House Republicans to “take immediate action to address the unacceptable and dangerous rise in anti-Semitism on social media platform X,” formerly Twitter, and accused the company of violating U.S. sanctions law.

Lawmakers led by Rep. Dan Goldman (D-New York) wrote to House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) asking him to order House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer (R-Kentucky) to convene a hearing with X owner Elon Musk and other company officials on the platform’s “profits from disseminating and amplifying anti-Semitic content” and its provision of premium account services to U.S.-designated terrorist groups.

“Such a hearing would be a critical first step in combating the alarming rise in anti-Semitism and the influence of foreign terrorist groups in the United States,” the lawmakers said in the letter.

Musk became a prominent supporter of former President Donald Trump and attended Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s speech to Congress as a guest of the Israeli leader.

The lawmakers accused X of “taking a dim view of a widespread and growing problem on his platform — either a lack of concern or, more nefariously, tacit support.”

The lawmakers said many of them wrote to X and Comer expressing their concerns but received “unsatisfactory responses from X and deafening silence from Chairman Comer.”

The letter stated that X’s prior sales of premium account services to Hezbollah Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah and Deputy Secretary General Naim Qassem, both of whom have been designated as terrorists by the U.S., were prohibited under U.S. law.

Separately, they noted that other entities under U.S. sanctions, including Iran’s Press TV and Russia’s Tinkoff Bank, also previously had paid premium accounts on the site.

The lawmakers stressed that under X’s policy, premium accounts are eligible to receive a share of advertising revenue from X, as well as additional features within X.

The letter also highlighted that paid premium accounts on the X platform were disseminating Hamas propaganda videos produced and published elsewhere by Hamas itself, containing graphic scenes of the Hamas attacks on Israel on October 7.

The Democrats said there was “clear indication that X profited from the dissemination of Hamas terrorist propaganda,” both through subscription fees charged to accounts that shared content and through ads that appeared in responses to posts containing Hamas propaganda.

They cited reports that X was running ads with “a litany of indisputably anti-Semitic hashtags,” including those expressing explicit support for white supremacy, and that those who paid for X subscriptions were sharing Nazi content, including speeches by Adolf Hitler.

The lawmakers also said anti-Semitic conspiracy theories about an assassination attempt on Trump were “spreading like wildfire” on Portal X and accused Musk of engaging in anti-Semitism.

Since taking over X last year, Musk has allowed a number of people who spread anti-Semitism and were once banned from Twitter back onto the platform, including prominent white nationalist leaders like Nick Fuentes, a more permissive approach than under previous Twitter leadership.

Pointing to Johnson’s public statements supporting the Jewish community, opposing anti-Semitism and addressing potential terrorist infiltration into the U.S., the lawmakers said convening a hearing on X “will show that your words matter.”

Under Johnson’s leadership, various House committees, including the Oversight Committee, have conducted investigations into anti-Semitism, particularly on college campuses. The House has also passed legislation, including the Anti-Semitism Awareness Act.

The lawmakers, citing Johnson’s condemnation of anti-Semitism on campuses, said terrorists and neo-Nazis also “should not be welcome on one of the largest social media platforms in the world.”

The letter was signed by Representatives: Jake Auchincloss (D-MA), Suzanne Bonamici (D-OR), Steve Cohen (D-TN), Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ), Greg Landsman (D-OH), Mike Levin (D -CA), Seth Magaziner (D-RI), Kathy Manning (D-NC), Jared Moskowitz (D-FL), Jamie Raskin (D-MD), Brad Schneider (D-IL), Kim Schrier (D-WA ), Brad Sherman (D-CA), Elissa Slotkin (D-MI), Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL), and Susan Wild (D-PA).

The signatories represent more than two-thirds of all Jewish Democrats in the House of Representatives, from the most moderate to the most progressive.