Carl P. Leubsdorf: Democrats face continued divisions over aid for Israel

At last week’s Democratic National Committee meeting in Minneapolis, chairman Ken Martin avoided a showdown over competing policy proposals on the troubled and increasingly divisive U.S.-Israel relationship.

But neither Martin nor the party’s congressional leaders are likely to prevent continued collisions in Congress and some Democratic primary splits reflecting divisions stemming from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s incessant campaign of destruction in Gaza.

By condoning, even sponsoring, Israeli brutality in Gaza and in the West Bank, especially against civilians, Netanyahu has confirmed the fears of many American Jews that he would overreact to the brutal 2023 Hamas attack on southern Israel that murdered over 1,200 and took 250 hostages.

His actions have sapped longstanding U.S. support for Israel, especially among younger Democrats. Even for supporters of Israel, it’s hard not to be appalled at what’s happening in Gaza, especially the attacks that have killed thousands of civilians.

In a Pew Research poll this spring, slightly over half said they have a very or somewhat unfavorable attitude toward Israel, an increase in 11 points in three years. That included seven of 10 Democrats, but only one in three Republicans.

Similarly, a recent Gallup Poll showed fewer than one in 10 Democrats approve of Israel’s actions in Gaza and support Netanyahu, compared with two-thirds of Republicans. But about half of Democrats over 55 backed the embattled prime minister and his actions.

A similar age division is evident in New York City’s mayoral race. Polls show Democratic nominee Zohran Mamdani, a Muslim who accused Israel of genocide, with twice as much support from Jewish voters under 50 as from older ones.

Unsurprisingly, his overall Jewish support is down from the norm. A recent general election poll showed Mamdani with fewer than half of Jewish voters. While that gave him a substantial margin over his three rivals, it’s far less than the usual Jewish support for a Democratic nominee.

For example, though 2024 Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris underperformed with New York’s Jewish voters, she still received about two-thirds of their votes.

President Donald Trump and most Republicans still support Netanyahu, but his actions are dividing Democrats.

That’s evident in Michigan’s hotly contested Senate primary, and the July 30 Senate vote on an amendment by Sen. Bernie Sanders in which a majority of Democratic senators voted, for the first time, to block a military sale to Israel.

They included every top Senate Democrat, except Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York.

In Michigan, where former President Joe Biden’s continuing support for Israel after the Hamas attacks sapped Democratic support among its large number of Muslim voters, the three leading Democrats have taken disparate positions.

Rep. Haley Stevens, the early leader in polls, is stressing her consistently pro-Israel record and saying she would have opposed the Sanders amendment. She has the support of the powerful American-Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), which was a key financial backer in her past House campaigns.

Both state Sen. Mallory McMorrow, shown in polls to be her principal primary opponent, and Abdul El-Sayed, a Sanders supporter who lost a 2018 bid for governor, said they would have supported the curb.

McMorrow has criticized Netanyahu while supporting a two-state solution that recognizes Palestinian independence and urged AIPAC to stay out of the race. El-Sayed, a leader of the independent movement that opposed Biden in 2024, has sharply criticized Israel’s actions in Gaza and called for ending U.S. military aid to Israel.

Elsewhere, some progressive Democrats who previously accepted money from AIPAC have turned it down, including North Carolina Rep. Valerie Foushee, who received some $2 million from AIPAC and affiliated groups in 2024.

“You all know that I took the money from AIPAC but check to see how much I’ve taken since that time and check my voting record to see how I have voted and what I have voted for as it relates to the people of Gaza,” she said at a recent town hall.

The issue already looms as a major dividing line in the nascent 2028 Democratic presidential race.

At least two potential candidates, Reps. Ro Khanna and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, have outspokenly criticized Israel’s continuing assaults on Gaza.

“It’s going to be a defining issue in the Democratic Party in the midterms and for 2028,” Khanna told Politico. He urged the United States to recognize a Palestinian state and stop sending weapons that kill civilians to Israel.

Former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, an unsuccessful 2020 candidate who may run again in 2028, discovered how the issue has evolved when he drew substantial criticism after a recent podcast in which he described Israel as a “friend” in need of support at a difficult time.

As a result, in subsequent interviews, he took a much sharper tone, supporting a ban on arms sales to Israel and recognition of a Palestinian state.

Against this background, the DNC confronted competing resolutions on Israel, one calling for a military arms embargo and suspension of aid, the other urging “unrestricted” aid for Gaza and a two-state solution.

Though Martin backed the latter proposal and it seemed likely to win, he withdrew it in the interest of party unity, declaring, “This is a moment that calls for shared dialogue, calls for shared advocacy.”

Continued divisions seem probable, given Netanyahu’s refusal to step down or cease the policies that have frayed his country’s American support.

Carl P. Leubsdorf is the former Washington bureau chief of the Dallas Morning News.