Imagine two sitting Republican Congresspeople planned a trip to a foreign country in conjunction with a nongovernmental organization. Imagine that particular NGO had a long history of Jew hatred: It had run a piece on its website quoting anti-Semitic myths about Jews imbibing Christian blood, republished a neo-Nazi article decrying the "Jew-controlled entertainment media" and suggested that "honor" was the proper response to a terrorist who murdered 38 Israelis, including 13 children.

Imagine that these two Congresspeople tweeted a cartoon from a cartoonist so anti-Semitic he won second prize at Iran's Holocaust denial cartoon contest. Imagine that these Congresspeople had themselves engaged in anti-Semitic slurs, ranging from a suggestion that Israel supporters in America suffer from dual loyalty, to the accusation that Israel "hypnotized the world," to the suggestion that Jewish money lies behind America's support for Israel ("it's all about the Benjamins"). Imagine that these Congresspeople had expressed support for terrorist Rasmea Odeh. Imagine also that both Congresspeople had a long history of associations with open anti-Semites.