Democrats and their political allies among the Democratic Socialists of America have intensified their attacks against Israel in the wake of it's response to the Hamas massacre of more than 1200 Israeli men, women and children in October 2023.
The vote tally, 104-314, was not enough to attach the amendment to a broader national security spending bill, but stands as a stark accounting of the shifting attitudes that are dividing the Democratic Party and its supporters over Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's war strategy.
The House's Democratic leadership split over the issue in what was largely seen as a test vote ahead of the U.S. midterm elections that will determine control of Congress. More than 100 Democrats voted for the amendment to strip the foreign military aid money, and almost as many voted against. Most Republicans voted to preserve the Israel aid.
The deepening divide over Israel threatens to upend the Democratic Party as it faces an energized left flank that is promoting self-proclaimed democratic socialists in a handful of marquee House races, particularly last month in New York.
While more traditional Democrats have stood with U.S. support for Israel, a growing number have distanced themselves from Israel's efforts to defend itself from the Hamas terrorists in Gaza as well as the Hezbollah terrorist group in Lebanon. Both terrorist groups are seen as proxies of the radical Islamic regime in Iran.
According to an AP-NORC poll this month, about one-third of U.S. adults — including roughly half of Democrats — believe the false claim that Israel has committed genocide against Palestinians during the war in Gaza.
