Suddenly There Is a Debate among Democrats over U.S. Aid to Israel

November 10, 2019 Dear stan, The cracks are starting to show in the wall of steadfast support for Israel that we are used to seeing in congress. There is suddenly a debate among Democrats over conditioning U.S. aid to Israel, with defenders of the status quo trying to play catchup. Josh Ruebner analyzed the shift saying we must support these steps in the right direction while acknowledging that none of them go nearly far enough. And Michael Arria reported on one effort to do just that as progressive organizations are pushing Bernie Sanders to turn his rhetoric of holding Israel accountable into legislative action. Still, there will clearly be challenges. Phil wrote about how limited the debate is within the mainstream Jewish community, as evidenced by the recent J Street national conference. "The J Street conference at times seemed like a battle inside the oligarchy over which Zionism will dominate, liberal or conservative support for Israel," he wrote. It is clear the challenge to U.S. policy will have to come from elsewhere. And meanwhile, the news remains grim from Palestine. Our week began with coverage of a leaked video showing an Israeli officer shooting a Palestinian man in the back as he walked away from the officers, his hands raised in the air. And as if to purposely prove that this disregard for Palestinian human rights begins at the very top, later in the week the Israeli Supreme Court upheld a government decision to deport Human Rights Watch’s Israel and Palestine Director Omar Shakir, over accusations that he advocates for BDS. Not only does Israel act with impunity, but it is actively moving to bar anyone who would seek to hold it accountable. Finally, I want to be sure to point your attention to Hannah Gurman's fascinating review of Bari Weiss's book How to Fight Anti-Semitism, which contextualizes Weiss's book in the long standing debate between neoconservatives and progressives. "Ultimately, Weiss and other neoconservative analysts of contemporary anti-semitism force Jews into a cynical politics that pits Jewish survival against other movements for social justice," Gurman writes. "Progressives have a more compelling vision to offer in which a politics of solidarity addresses threats against Jewish communities not at the expense of other 'others,' but alongside them." Thanks for reading, Adam Horowitz Executive Editor, Mondoweiss