Rep. Rashida Tlaib is demanding that Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer stop an Israeli defense technology company from establishing a new manufacturing operation in the state, attacking a project expected to bring at least $5 million in investment and 125 jobs to the Detroit area.

The Michigan Democrat is targeting Capture Group Inc., the newly established American arm of Israel-based Capture Systems Ltd., which plans to open a manufacturing and engineering hub in Sterling Heights, a major center of Michigan’s defense industry in Macomb County.

The project was publicly celebrated by Whitmer’s administration just last month. The state approved a $936,000 performance-based grant through the Michigan Business Development Program to support the expansion, which is expected to generate at least 125 new jobs over five years.

The jobs are slated to begin at $25 an hour plus benefits, according to state officials. Capture Group has committed to investing at least $5 million in the facility.

Tlaib, however, is urging Whitmer, a fellow Democrat, to reverse course and prevent state taxpayer money from going toward the Israeli-owned company.

In comments Sunday, Tlaib accused Michigan of directing public funds toward “bombs that kill children” while “small businesses, many of them black- and women-owned” are struggling for support.

She further charged that Capture Systems manufactures weapons “used to commit genocide.”

Calling Michigan an “anti-war and anti-genocide state,” Tlaib declared that Capture Systems has “no place in our state and should not be receiving a dime of public funds.”

Capture Systems specializes in defense and homeland-security technology, with a particular emphasis on counter-drone systems designed to detect, identify and neutralize unmanned aerial threats. The Israeli company created Capture Group Inc. this year as part of its effort to establish a permanent American presence and expand its access to the U.S. defense market.

Once operational, the Sterling Heights facility is expected to manufacture counter-UAS platforms, optical surveillance equipment and mobile defense systems. It will also serve as a center for developing, integrating and testing advanced counter-drone technology and remote-controlled weapon stations.

The company had considered locating the operation in Florida or Virginia before selecting Michigan, according to state officials.

When Whitmer announced the investment in September, she portrayed the project as a significant addition to Michigan’s growing defense industry.

“Michigan is on the move and open for business, competing for and winning big projects in next-generation industries from aviation to defense,” Whitmer said. “Today’s announcement will create 125 new good-paying jobs and help cement Michigan as the best place for cutting-edge research and development that moves our nation forward. Let’s keep working together to show the world that Michigan is the best place to build the future.”

Capture Systems Group Chief Operating Officer Avi Braun similarly described the decision to build in Michigan as part of the company’s broader expansion into the American market.

“We are honored to partner with the State of Michigan as we establish Capture Systems’ U.S. manufacturing and engineering hub,” Braun said. “This investment represents a major milestone in our global expansion strategy and reflects our long-term commitment to creating high-value jobs, investing in advanced manufacturing, and strengthening America’s defense industrial base. Michigan offers an exceptional combination of engineering talent, manufacturing excellence, and a business-friendly environment, making it the ideal location for our next phase of growth. We look forward to becoming a long-term member of Michigan’s defense and aerospace ecosystem while delivering innovative technologies that help protect critical infrastructure, law enforcement, and military personnel.”

Tlaib’s effort to derail the project has also drawn opposition from within her own party.

Michigan state Rep. Noah Arbit, a Democrat representing the state’s 20th District, defended Capture Systems and argued that the technologies it produces are important to American national security.

Arbit said the company develops “the kinds of systems that the U.S. needs to compete with China, Russia and other adversaries.”

The dispute pits Tlaib against an economic-development project championed by Whitmer’s administration at a time when Michigan has been working to expand its defense and advanced-manufacturing footprint. Sterling Heights already forms a major part of the state’s defense corridor, and local officials welcomed Capture Group’s decision to establish its U.S. operations there.

Tlaib, a member of the progressive congressional faction known as “The Squad,” has been one of Israel’s most outspoken opponents in Congress and has repeatedly sought to curtail American military assistance to the Jewish state.

Following the Hamas massacre in Israel on October 7, 2023, Tlaib continued accusing Israel of maintaining an “apartheid system” and criticized American funding “to support the apartheid government”.

She has also repeatedly defended her use of the slogan “from the river to the sea,” describing it as an expression of support for Palestinian Arab freedom despite widespread criticism that the phrase calls for eliminating Israel as a Jewish state.

Tlaib also came under intense criticism after initially blaming Israel for the October 2023 explosion at Gaza’s Al-Ahli Hospital. Subsequent U.S. and Israeli assessments determined that the blast was caused by a failed rocket fired from Gaza by Palestinian Islamic Jihad.

Whitmer’s administration has not indicated that it intends to withdraw the grant or abandon the Capture Group project in response to Tlaib’s demand.

{Matzav.com}