Rep. Ted Lieu (D-CA) condemns some pro-Palestine campus protesters.

House Democrats Vice Chair Ted Lieu on Tuesday condemned pro-Gaza college protesters who broke into and took over a building at Columbia University, and rejected any claims that they are expressing their First Amendment rights.

“You have the absolute right to free speech in America — you can protest — but the First Amendment does not give you the right to break windows, to vandalize buildings, to take over private buildings, and to make students who happen to be of Jewish descent feel unsafe. Those things are not protected by the First Amendment,” the California Democrat said during a House Democratic leadership news conference in the morning.

“The folks who are protesting need to understand that line,” Lieu continued. “And when they cross that line, then universities have every right to take action against those students.”

Pro-Palestinian protesters at Columbia took over Hamilton Hall, which is home to some administrative offices, after the university on Monday started suspending students for not clearing out the on-campus encampment. The university has since closed the campus, except for essential employees and students who live in a dorm.