Mingcha | US congressmen angrily criticized Congress for passing the Anti-Semitism Awareness Act? Is it just another video of a fake one?
2024-08-27
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Quick Facts
- The video was actually shot in 2012. It shows that Mike Bost, then a member of the Illinois State Congress, was dissatisfied with a plan led by the Democratic Party to reform the state pension system.
- In fact, Mike Bost, the protagonist of the video circulating online, voted in favor of the Anti-Semitism Awareness Act passed by the U.S. House of Representatives on May 1.
Background
In May this year, as anti-war protests continued in many colleges and universities in the United States and triggered violent incidents, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Anti-Semitism Awareness Act on May 1, expanding the definition of "anti-Semitism." The bill advocates incorporating the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance's definition of anti-Semitism into the anti-discrimination chapter of the U.S. Civil Rights Act. According to the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance, anti-Semitism is a certain view of Jews, which may manifest as hatred of Jews.
Subsequently, accounts on social media platforms continued to post videos saying that a US congressman was angry about this and angrily scolded the passage of the Anti-Semitism Awareness Act in Congress. The video circulated online showed that a congressman excitedly threw a document and expressed strong dissatisfaction with the passage of a certain bill. He did not mention the name of the bill, but the Chinese subtitles in the video were marked as "Anti-Semitism Awareness Act."
Screenshots of videos circulated on social platforms from May to August
Check
Where did the video circulating online come from?
We used InVID video software to capture key frames of the video, and combined it with keywords in the video content to search on Google. The results showed that CNN had released a clip of the video on June 1, 2012, titled "Illinois Congressman Mike Bost explains the reason for his angry outburst."
Screenshot of the original video released by CNN in 2012
According to a report by CBS on May 30, 2012, Mike Bost was dissatisfied with the Democratic-led plan to reform the state pension system. The bill, supported by former Illinois Governor Pat Quinn and former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan, would reduce the annual cost of living increases for public servants (such as state government employees and university faculty members) and would gradually require public schools and universities to pay retirement benefits for their employees. Mike Bost believed that Michael Madigan had too much power, so he said in the video, "All power is concentrated in one person - this is not the American way!"
Screenshot of CBS report in 2012
Mike Bost has "ranted" about bills more than once. In 2013, he expressed strong dissatisfaction with an amendment to a concealed-carry gun bill, which caused much discussion. According to a 2014 report by National Public Radio (NPR), voters in larger cities in northern Illinois criticized Mike Bost's "angry behavior" and some people thought it was a political show.
Photo taken by the Associated Press in 2013
Screenshot of NPR's 2014 report
Mike Bost rants about the Anti-Semitism Awareness Act?
It should be pointed out that when the video was shot, Mike Bost was a member of the Illinois House of Representatives. It was not until 2015 that he became a member of the House of Representatives representing Illinois' 12th Congressional District.
According to the voting records of the Anti-Semitism Awareness Act in the U.S. House of Representatives on May 1, the House of Representatives passed the bill with 320 votes in favor and 91 votes against. Among them, 70 Democratic members and 21 Republican members voted against, while Mike Bost voted in favor of the bill.
Screenshot of voting results of the U.S. House of Representatives
The current progress shows that the Anti-Semitism Awareness Act is still to be submitted to the Senate. The Hill reported on July 7 that Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer chose to slow down the progress of the bill in order to avoid causing strong dissatisfaction among Democratic senators, although these senators are still in the minority. "These senators are highly critical of Israel, claiming that Israel is responsible for genocide and using 'famine' as a weapon of war."
Screenshot of The Hill report
In summary, the video was actually filmed in 2012, when Mike Bost, then a member of the Illinois State Legislature, was dissatisfied with a plan led by the Democratic Party to reform the state pension system, which is inconsistent with the online rumors. Mike Bost, the protagonist of the online video, voted in favor of the Anti-Semitism Awareness Act passed by the U.S. House of Representatives on May 1.
Investigator Tao Yadi
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