(July 15, 2026 \/ JNS)\n <\/p>\n
A House amendment to end aid to Israel sharply divided the Democratic caucus on Wednesday with less than half of Democrats voting to continue annual military funding to the Jewish State.<\/p>\n
Only 93 of the 212 Democratic lawmakers in the House voted to oppose the amendment from Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) to end $3.3 billion in assistance to Israel.<\/p>\n
The amendment failed 104-314, with 103 Democrats voting to end aid to Israel and 10 voting \u201cpresent.\u201d Massie was the lone Republican to vote in favor of the measure, with 215 Republicans opposed.<\/p>\n
Debate on amendment before the vote largely pitted Democrats against one another, with pro-Israel Democrats accusing their colleagues, who intended to vote in favor of the amendment, of endangering U.S. national security and the lives of Israeli civilians.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis amendment would embolden the enemies of peace, those pursuing the complete elimination of Israel and those who seek the death of Jews,\u201d said Rep. Steny Hoyer (D-Md.). \u201cIt is a vote to weaken our ability to engage in the region and it\u2019s a vote against American security, against American interests and against American safety.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rep. Joaquin Castro (D-Texas) accused Israel of \u201cethnic cleansing\u201d and said that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had taken Israel \u201cdown an ugly path.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIsrael does not need and quite honestly does not deserve more American money for weapons,\u201d Castro said. \u201cDo not reward a wrongdoer.\u201d<\/p>\n
Support for Israel has rapidly become one of the biggest fault lines in Democratic politics, as pro-Israel incumbents have lost a string of primary elections to anti-Israel challengers.<\/p>\n
Democrats who voted in favor of the amendment to cut off Israel aid included more than a dozen congressmen who are endorsed by AIPAC as \u201cpro-Israel\u201d candidates, including former House speaker Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.).<\/p>\n
Matt Brooks, CEO of the Republican Jewish Coalition, stated that the group \u201capplauds House Republicans for unanimously defeating Thomas Massie\u2019s reckless effort to strip all American aid to Israel from the State Department funding bill.\u201d<\/p>\n
Under the \u201cstrong leadership\u201d of U.S. President Donald Trump and House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), \u201cAmerica has Israel\u2019s back,\u201d Brooks stated. \u201cToday, the GOP-led House of Representatives proved it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Brooks said that Massie is \u201ca voice of one in the Republican Party\u201d and a \u201clame duck outlier.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Republican majority left no doubt about where our party stands: resolutely with the Jewish state,\u201d he said. \u201cThe contrast could not be clearer. In today\u2019s Democratic Party, vociferous hostility to Israel is not the fringe. It is their future.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDemocrats\u2019 primaries are sending it to Congress, their leaders are indulging it and their base is demanding it,\u201d he added. \u201cToday\u2019s Democratic Party is being shaped in the image of the worst, most radicalized elements of its anti-Israel base, and the Squad\u2019s Hamas caucus is leading the way. Today\u2019s vote reaffirms the longstanding commitment of Republicans to stand unwaveringly with Israel through thick and thin.\u201d<\/p>\n