Does Anyone Have a Fire Extinguisher?

America reached a new low this past week simultaneous with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s address to a joint session of Congress. Thousands of pro-Hamas activists rioted outside the Capitol Building and scuffled with the Capital Police.

The dress rehearsal for this anti-American hatefest first took place in Dearborn, Michigan, where protesters shouted “Death to America!” on April 5. That’s the date when the United States finally joined Europeans in realizing that there is an Islamist belief system wholly incompatible with democratic self-government and the rule of law.

What followed soon thereafter was matchsticks from various locales setting the Stars and Stripes aflame. Expect an enraged ghost of Betsy Ross to make an appearance. There are simply not enough fraternity brothers from Chapel Hill, or fire extinguishers, to defend American flags nationwide.

Expect an enraged ghost of Betsy Ross to make an appearance. There are simply not enough fraternity brothers from Chapel Hill, or fire extinguishers, to defend American flags nationwide.

The spectacle in our nation’s capital last week was sickening.

American flags, and an effigy of Uncle Sam, were torched, accompanied by anti-American, antisemitic jeering on the streets. A replica of the Liberty Bell was spraypainted with, “F-ck Israel. F-ck capitalists. Abolish the USA.” More colorful and threatening graffiti was intended for Jewish-American eyes, monuments defaced with the warning, “Hamas is Coming!”

Fountains and statues desecrated with profanity. American flags yanked down at Union Station and Columbus Circle, replaced with Palestinian flags. And, of course, there were spellbound chants of “Allahu Akbar” recited throughout the day, as if the religious inclinations and violent marching orders of the protesters were not already well known.

In case progressives wished to minimize the outrage, deluding themselves that what we all witnessed was merely a peaceful assembly, the protesters wanted everyone to know that they were calling it a “Day of Rage.”

Long after Netanyahu concluded his remarks, Republican congressional lawmakers, including the Speaker of the House, and some combat veterans, restored the American flags to their rightful places. Such flag-swapping rituals have been growing since the fine people of Dearborn, where more than half its residents are Muslim, sent a message that Sharia is their preferred political system, and the Prophet Muhammad, not George Washington, their favorite general.

Let’s get one thing straight: The First Amendment protects none of this sort of expressive activity. Good luck getting the media, or law professors, to advise Americans of how the Constitution, and our Founding Fathers, would have regarded these lawless pro-Hamas scoundrels. No free speech guarantees exist to threaten Jews, strike police officers, resist arrest and destroy federal property.

Hate crime, anyone?

Predictably, few arrests were made. Those arrested were summarily released. The Department of Justice issued no statement that it was undertaking an investigation that would lead to indictments and prosecutions.

Rounding them up wouldn’t even present a problem. No facial recognition technology is necessary. In this latest phase of anti-Israel, anti-American animus, the keffiyeh scarves have come off. Many of the agitators no longer seek anonymity. They have grown more brazen and confident, knowing full well that the United States and its institutions are acting out of fear and won’t press charges.

In this latest phase of anti-Israel, anti-American animus, the keffiyeh scarves have come off. Many of the agitators no longer seek anonymity. They have grown more brazen and confident.

This is precisely what terrorists aim for—terror—and what they achieved in many Western nations.

With the presidential election imminent, and a female woman of color heading the Democratic ticket, the attorney general is undoubtedly terrified of the political ramifications of prosecuting progressives and persons of color—even persons of color who are on student visas and easily deportable. As noncitizens, they can’t even vote. No matter. Even looking at them the wrong way is racist.

Meanwhile, Harvard just announced that the roughly dozen students arrested at its intifada encampments and denied diplomas at graduation will be awarded their sheepskins after all. We wouldn’t want terrorists-in-waiting to be disadvantaged in seeking gainful employment. Think of the wonderful mayhem they will introduce to the private sector. That should make Harvard proud. Achieving equity for minorities is too important a value to punish anyone who hates America as much as they despise Israel.

More than 3,100 student activists were arrested or detained on campus this past year at 100 different colleges. Every single one of them should be expected to return to mischievous full-strength in the fall—regardless of whether they have already graduated. What could possibly be more important than intimidating Jews and giving comfort to Hamas and Iran? Antisemitic professors are eagerly awaiting their arrival. These “academics” spent the summer not writing papers but memorizing the Muslim Brotherhood playbook.

Meanwhile, nearly 500 January 6 rioters remain in prison for the crimes they committed at the nation’s capital. Does anyone have an explanation for the disparate treatment between these two riots? Are we saying that trespassing in the the Halls of Congress while carrying American flags is a far more serious act of criminality than vandalizing monuments and torching those same flags, but with the added touch of replacing them with Palestinian flags, outside the Capitol?

I don’t get it.

Yes, it’s true that Supreme Court precedent allows for anti-American flag-burning, a shameful misapplication of free speech, to my mind. Congressman Brian Mast, who lost both legs fighting for that flag, and said goodbye to far too many friends inside coffins draped in that flag, made his disgust known. But such symbolic statements must occur at peaceful assemblies, and not incite violent rioting. And the First Amendment does not privilege swapping American for Palestinian flags.

Meanwhile, inside the Rotunda, Israel’s prime minister was conducting a clinic not just in inspiring oratory, but also high-intensity aerobics—the number of rousing standing ovations he received were too numerous to count. John Fetterman even wore a suit. The outside agitators and inside lawmakers was the perfect juxtaposition of our political divide: worshippers of darkness representing one; the inheritors of the Enlightenment, the other.

To illustrate what side he was on, Netanyahu invoked America’s birthdate as the democratic shot heard around the world. But for far too many Americans, it is 1619, and not 1776, that animates their unpatriotic impulses—the date when the racist, inexorable mission of the United States was first set in motion.

Prepare yourselves. These vulgar spectacles with their open contempt for the United States are officially on tour. They are headed for a town square and village green near you. Taylor Swift’s global Eras concert may one day find itself eclipsed by an Islamist traveling show that brought our era of Western civilization to a close.

Thane Rosenbaum is a novelist, essayist, law professor and Distinguished University Professor at Touro University, where he directs the Forum on Life, Culture & Society. He is the legal analyst for CBS News Radio. His most recent book is titled “Saving Free Speech … From Itself,” and his forthcoming book is titled, “Beyond Proportionality: Is Israel Fighting a Just War in Gaza?”