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For Immediate Release
June, 26 2018, 12:00am EDT
Contact:
Dan Riffle, 202-821-5021, dan.riffle@mail.house.gov
Rep. Ellison Statement on Supreme Court Ruling to Uphold Muslim Ban
Rep. Keith Ellison (D-MN) released the following statement after the Supreme Court ruled today to uphold President Trump's Muslim ban:
"Today's decision undermines the core value of religious tolerance on which America was founded. I am deeply disappointed that this ruling gives legitimacy to discrimination and Islamophobia.
WASHINGTON
Rep. Keith Ellison (D-MN) released the following statement after the Supreme Court ruled today to uphold President Trump's Muslim ban:
"Today's decision undermines the core value of religious tolerance on which America was founded. I am deeply disappointed that this ruling gives legitimacy to discrimination and Islamophobia.
"America holds a unique place in the world as a nation of immigrants. Unlike some other countries, we welcome refugees, asylum seekers, and dreamers fleeing war and instability in other parts of the world. America is and must remain the 'land of the free' where the family escaping persecution in North Korea or civil war in Syria can seek shelter and thrive."
"Today's ruling is unjust. Like the Korematsu decision that upheld Japanese internment camps or Plessy v. Ferguson that established 'separate but equal,' this decision will someday serve as a marker of shame. Until then, we must keep fighting for an America that recognizes that every human life has value and reflects our values of generosity and inclusion for all."
Rep. Keith Ellison has represented the Fifth Congressional District of Minnesota in the U.S. House of Representatives since taking office on January 4, 2007. The Fifth Congressional District is the most vibrant and diverse district in Minnesota with a rich history and traditions. The Fifth District includes the City of Minneapolis and the surrounding suburbs.
LATEST NEWS
'We're Making Progress!' Says Bernie Sanders as Union Leader Bob Brooks Wins PA Primary
"This November, we're going to unite our party and welcome working people who are ready to come home," said the working class champion.
May 20, 2026
Bob Brooks, president of the largest firefighters' union in Pennsylvania and a champion of working-class politics, came out victorious in the Democratic primary race for the state's 7th district on Tuesday as he vowed to unify voters during the general election and flip a seat currently held by first-term Republican Rep. Ryan Mackenzie.
"This November, we're going to unite our party and welcome working people who are ready to come home," Brooks told a crowd of supporters, many holding union signs back the candidate, at a victory rally in Bethlehem, the historic steel town in the state's western Lehigh Valley.
Brooks, backed Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and a long list of national and regional unions but also endorsed by Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro and former transportation secretary Pete Buttigieg, overcame a crowded field—that included Lamont McClure, Ryan Crosswell, and Carol Obando-Derstine—to win the contest with nearly 48% of the total vote.
As Common Dreams reported, Republican forces launched a mysterious spending effort to thwart Brooks' campaign in the final weeks before the primary, with an outside group called Left PAC launching a $1 million ad campaign against him.
I am honored to be the Democratic nominee for PA-07.
On to November. pic.twitter.com/wsYngHqPrk
— Bob Brooks (@VoteBobBrooks) May 20, 2026
"Bob Brooks just showed what can happen when Democrats run unapologetically as working-class economic populists," said the progressive advocacy group Our Revolution in response to the win. "A firefighter and union voice running in tough political terrain by directly taking on corruption, concentrated wealth, and a system failing ordinary people."
Democratic strategist Lis Smith echoed many who said the fight to flip the 7th District from red to blue will be key in the effort to take the House away from Republicans in the fall.
"We need Bob Brooks and more Bob Brooks’s in Congress," said Smith. "This is one of Dems’ best flip opportunities."
And Sanders also weighed in, placing Brooks in the context of other progressives who won primaries this season and look to change the makeup of Congress come next year.
"Congratulations to Bob Brooks, a retired firefighter and union leader, on winning the Democratic primary in Pennsylvania’s 7th Congressional District," said Sanders. "His win follows the recent progressive victories of iron worker and union leader Brian Poindexter in Ohio, and union organizer Analilia Mejía in New Jersey. We’re making progress!"
Also in Pennsylvania on Tuesday, democratic socialist candidate Chris Rabb won his primary race in Pennsylvania's 3rd District, which represents large portions of Philadelphia.
The Working Families Party noted that the Brooks and Rabb victories, taken together, point Democrats toward a very important lesson.
“These are two candidates who centered working-class issues," Nicholas Gavio, a spokesperson for the Pennsylvania Working Families Party, which backed both candidates, told Politico. "They’re obviously from different districts and demographics. But the message of populism—in Philadelphia and in the Lehigh Valley—sells and works."
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'AIPAC Lost!' Democratic Socialist Chris Rabb Wins US House Primary in Pennsylvania
"This victory would not have been possible without the work of thousands of working class people across Philadelphia organizing for a better world."
May 20, 2026
"Standing against genocide is good policy and good politics!" proclaimed the grassroots group Track AIPAC after Pennsylvania state Rep. Chris Rabb won the Democratic US House primary in the state's 3rd Congressional District in Philadelphia.
Rabb, a democratic socialist, was outspoken in his criticism of Israel and the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) and his support of Palestinian rights during the campaign—aligning himself with a growing majority of Democratic voters while the pro-Israel lobby worked to secure a victory for one of his opponents, Dr. Ala Stanford.
314 Action Fund, a super political action committee (PAC) that supported Stanford, covertly received $500,000 from the powerful but increasingly toxic pro-Israel lobbying group, despite the fact that Stanford claimed she did not take money from AIPAC.
Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro, a vehement supporter of Israel who butted heads with Rabb over US Immigration and Customs Enforcement in the state, also reportedly worked behind the scenes to defeat the progressive.
With 92% of votes in early Wednesday morning, Rabb had secured 44.3% of the vote compared to 24.1% for Stanford and 29.5% for a third candidate, Sharif Street.
Chants of "AIPAC lost!" rang out at Rabb's victory party in Philadelphia.
“AIPAC LOST” chants at the Chris Rabb victory party pic.twitter.com/zfZJafLxVo
— James🔻 (@GoodVibePolitik) May 20, 2026
In a victory speech to supporters, Rabb said his campaign—which also centered on his calls for Medicare for All; a Civilian Climate Corps to work toward decarbonizing the US economy; and universal basic guarantees for housing, childcare, and other essentials—had been dismissed by the Democratic establishment
"They told me this wasn't possible. That's what they said," said Rabb. "I don't know who 'they' are, but I know who we are. I'm looking at 'We the People.' And I'm not talking about 'We the People' 250 years ago. That was a much smaller 'we.'"
Rabb was outspoken in his criticism of the Democratic establishment during his campaign, and said in a one interview that a key question facing the party is whether it is "prepared to listen to the base that demands this progressivism because what many people are calling progressive are pretty much standard things in other nations where universal healthcare is the thing, where there's no notion of healthcare insurance, it's just healthcare."
This is how the guy who just won in the bluest Congressional district in the country talked about the Democratic Party and its messaging. pic.twitter.com/DsaVMi76eB
— Jacobin (@jacobin) May 20, 2026
Rabb secured endorsements from influential progressive leaders including US Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), Ro Khanna (D-Calif.), and Summer Lee (D-Penn.) as the election drew near.
Should he win the general election in the deep-blue district in November, journalist Prem Thakker noted, he'll be one of at least four democratic socialists in the US Congress, including Ocasio-Cortez, Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.), and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.).
Others whose primaries are coming up include former Rep. Cori Bush in Missouri and Darializa Avila Chevalier and state Rep. Claire Valdez in New York.
Ryan Grim of Drop Site News credited progressive organizations, including pro-Palestine super PAC American Priorities and the Justice Democrats, with giving crucial support to Rabb's campaign.
"And Rabb himself ran an exceptional race, building on years of relationships he built among progressives and activists in the city," said Grim. "And also AIPAC royally screwed up, got caught trying to spend money through 314 Action to prop up a flawed candidate, and then never recovered when she flopped."
Khanna said that along with Tuesday night's loss in Kentucky of Republican Rep. Thomas Massie, who has joined Democrats in pushing for the release of files related to sex offender and President Donald Trump associate Jeffrey Epstein and for a stop to Trump's military assault on Iran, the primaries sent a clear message to candidates.
"If you take a stand against war, AIPAC, and the Epstein class, you have no place in the Trump coalition," said Khanna. "But the future of the Democratic Party that is done with the establishment is yours to shape."
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Trump Critic on Epstein and Iran War, Massie Ousted by AIPAC-Backed Gallrein
"He lost," said friend and congressional ally Rep. Ro Khanna, "because he had the guts to stand up to the Epstein class and against the war."
May 20, 2026
Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky, an outspoken libertarian and one of the few Republicans in the current Congress who has shown the courage to stand up to US President Donald Trump on issues ranging from the Epstein files to the disastrous war against Iran, was defeated Tuesday by a Trump-backed challenger in what was broadly characterized as political revenge by the president and his MAGA allies.
Massie fell to former Navy SEAL Ed Gallrein by 10 points (55%-45%) in Kentucky's 4th District. Gallrein was not only supported by Trump but also had Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth stump for his campaign last week, activities that critics said violated the Hatch Act, which prevents members of the executive branch from participating in electoral politics.
Gallrein was also the favored candidate of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), which showered millions of dollars on his campaign through a variety of political action committees (PACs), making the primary race in Kentucky's 4th the most expensive in the nation's history.
In remarks conceding his defeat, Massie took it on the chin, but also threw a swipe at Trump as well as his GOP colleagues, who have proved nearly completely cowed by the president both on the domestic front and when it comes to foreign policy.
"If the legislative branch always votes with the president, we do have a king,” Massie told his supporters Tuesday night, as opposed to the "republic" the nation is designed to have if the Constitution is followed. He also took a jab at Gallrein's backing from AIPAC, saying as he took the microphone that "I would have come out sooner, but I had to call my opponent to concede, and it took a while to find him in Tel Aviv."
Massie: I would have come out sooner but I had to call my opponent to concede and it took a while to find him in Tel Aviv pic.twitter.com/DmTkDfS17a
— Acyn (@Acyn) May 20, 2026
Massie, along with Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.), was the leader on two key issues over recent months that challenged Trump's authority: the first was forcing the release of the sealed files of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and the other was pushing to curtail Trump's war of choice in Iran, which the president launched in February without congressional approval and in violation of international law.
Responding to Massie's defeat, Khanna said Tuesday night, "My good friend Thomas Massie lost tonight. He lost because he had the guts to stand up to the Epstein class and against the war."
My good friend @RepThomasMassie lost tonight.
He lost because he had the guts to stand up to the Epstein class and against the war.
He won voters under 45 by 30 points.
Tonight, I say to this voters who feel rejected by Trump. We welcome you. Join our coalition to take on a… pic.twitter.com/tAGJjtct5b
— Ro Khanna (@RoKhanna) May 20, 2026
Khanna further noted that Massie "risked his career to pass the most popular and consequential bipartisan legislation in modern history," referring to the resolution forcing the Department of Justice to release the Epstein files.
He added that Massie won young voters in his district—those "who believe the system is unfair"—by 45%. "Tonight, I say to these voters who feel rejected by Trump: We welcome you," said Khanna. "Join our coalition to take on a rotten system and stand for the working class over the Epstein class."
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