Washington DC - Washington state Democratic Congressman Adam Smith is facing heat after he called for the arrest of protesters calling for a ceasefire in Gaza.

Per The Guardian, Smith sat down for an interview with the One Decision podcast, where he described protesters' efforts as "left-wing fascism" and "totalitarianism."

"I don't know if there's such a thing as left-wing fascism," he explained. "If you want to just call it left-wing totalitarianism, then that's what it is. It is a direct challenge to representative democracy now."

Smith touched on how protesters shut down a town hall meeting he hosted in March, describing their efforts as "illegal… completely wrong… and enormously dangerous."

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"[The protesters'] goal and their objective was not to get their point across – it was to silence anyone who dared to disagree with them, to make sure that only one voice was heard," Smith argued.

Smith's comments come as multiple universities across the country have recently seen massive pro-Palestinian protests on their campuses, resulting in a number of arrests and violence by law enforcement.

He went on to argue that protesters should face legal repercussions for their actions.

"The point of it is intimidation," he argued, "and I think [they should] be arrested for it."

On October 7, 2023, the Palestinian militant group Hamas launched a major attack against Israel, which resulted in around 1,200 deaths and 240 people, mostly civilians, being taken hostage.

Since then, Israel has launched a retaliatory offensive that has, to date, killed more than 34,000 people, the vast majority of which are women and children.

The conflict has sparked countless protests in the US, with advocates calling for legislatures to use their influence to urge Israel to cease its bombing campaign against civilians in Gaza and push for the US government to discontinue its financial support for the country.

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Politicians opposed to the protests have intentionally mislabeled the protesters as "Hamas supporters," arguing their grievances come into conflict with the idea of Zionism, or the implementation of a fully Jewish state.

While a number of notable elected Democrat officials have expressed support for a ceasefire, and the majority of Democrat voters agree, Republicans, who currently hold a majority in the House, have aggressively opposed it, and have insisted that the US continue supporting Israel financially throughout the conflict.