House Democrats split sharply Thursday as 33 members broke with party leadership and helped Republicans pass legislation targeting colleges that boycott Israel. The Protect Economic and Academic Freedom Act of 2026 cleared the House on September 3rd by a vote of 237-169. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and most Democrats opposed the measure. The bill now advances to the Senate.
The legislation would make colleges and universities participating in what it defines as a “non-expressive commercial boycott” of Israel ineligible for certain federal student aid. Schools receiving federal support for international education programs would also have to certify that students are not being unreasonably obstructed from participating in academic programs in Israel. The proposal is aimed at institutional commercial and academic boycotts rather than individual student protests or classroom speech.
The vote placed Democratic divisions over Israel on full display two months before the midterm elections. Jeffries joined 167 Democrats in voting against the bill, while 33 Democratic lawmakers supported it. Republicans provided 203 votes in favor, with Kentucky Rep. Thomas Massie and Ohio Rep. Warren Davidson supplying the only two Republican votes against it. One independent also voted for the legislation.
As Trending Politics reported, Democratic opponents argued that the proposal could threaten constitutionally protected expression even if they personally opposed the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement. New York Rep. Jerry Nadler said, “The First Amendment right to free speech does not apply only to agreeable speech.” Nadler described BDS as strategically foolish and morally objectionable but maintained that offensive political activity remains protected.
New Jersey Democratic Rep. Josh Gottheimer co-authored the legislation with North Carolina Republican Rep. Virginia Foxx. In a statement following the vote, Gottheimer argued that the narrowly written bill would leave protests, debate and individual speech untouched. “It simply says that if your university takes federal taxpayer dollars, it can’t discriminate against academic partnerships or investments with one country,” he said.
The official House roll call recorded 27 lawmakers as not voting, including 14 Democrats and 13 Republicans. The legislation passed as H.R. 4795 during the second session of the 119th Congress. It would also direct the Department of Education to publish a list of institutions that decline to certify that they are not participating in the commercial boycott activity covered by the bill.
Foxx argued that colleges embracing BDS policies had allowed hostile conditions for Jewish students and that federal money should carry consequences for discriminatory institutional conduct. Gottheimer likewise pointed to reports of Jewish students facing threats, assaults and interference while trying to attend classes. Supporters framed the legislation as a condition on federal funding rather than a prohibition on students expressing anti-Israel views.
"*" indicates required fields
Michigan Democratic Rep. Rashida Tlaib attacked the bill from the House floor and argued that Jewish students have themselves participated in campus BDS campaigns. “This is an attack on free speech and academic freedom,” Tlaib said before accusing supporters of defending what she called a “genocidal apartheid state.” Her remarks illustrated the widening distance between the party’s anti-Israel faction and Democrats who joined Republicans in supporting the measure.
The bill would amend the Higher Education Act of 1965, but the House vote alone does not make its funding restrictions law. H.R. 4795 must still pass the Senate before it can be sent to President Donald Trump for his signature. For now, the 33 Democratic votes supplied Republicans with a bipartisan House majority despite opposition from Jeffries and most of the Democratic caucus.
Watch Jasmine Crockett start a Democrat Civil War of her own here: