Updated
Updated · POLITICO · Jul 17
AIPAC Halts Donations to 100-Plus Democrats After Israel Aid Cut Vote
Updated
Updated · POLITICO · Jul 17

AIPAC Halts Donations to 100-Plus Democrats After Israel Aid Cut Vote

3 articles · Updated · POLITICO · Jul 17

Summary

  • AIPAC stopped accepting online donations for House Democrats who backed a Republican amendment to cut U.S. aid to Israel, escalating fallout from a vote that drew support from more than 100 Democrats.
  • The amendment failed Wednesday because Republicans largely opposed it, but progressives cast the triple-digit Democratic vote as a breakthrough after years of anger in the party base over Israel’s treatment of Palestinians and the Gaza war.
  • Rep. Brad Schneider, a pro-Israel Illinois Democrat who leads the centrist New Democrat Coalition, called the proposal hastily crafted and said he is trying to understand how it won such broad support inside his caucus.
  • Schneider argued Democrats can still unite on Israel policy next term even as an Israel-critical bloc grows stronger, while acknowledging divisions over Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and settler violence in the West Bank.

Insights

As Israel seeks to move U.S. aid into opaque defense accounts, how will public oversight of the multi-billion dollar alliance be maintained?
Can the strategic benefits of U.S. aid to Israel continue to justify the escalating humanitarian cost in Palestine?
With West Bank settlements expanding and international courts ruling against Israel, is the two-state solution now a diplomatic fiction?