Both Michigan Senators Gary Peters and Debbie Stabenow vote against a resolution that would scrutinize future US military aid to Israel

On Tuesday, the US Senate voted to table a resolution introduced by Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, which would put conditions on any future US military aid to Israel. The proposed resolution is an update to the 1961 Foreign Assistance Act.

The primary question within the resolution that Sen. Sanders put forth was, “Do you support asking the State Department for information on whether human rights violations may have occurred using U.S. equipment or assistance in Israel’s current military campaign?”

The resolution, linked here, provides some political leverage that Congress could adopt. However, the resolution does not go far enough. In a statement released by Sen. Sanders he states. “This resolution is not prescriptive – it does not alter aid to Israel in any way. It simply requests that the State Department report on how our aid is being used…I hope it is not controversial to ask how U.S. weapons are being used.”

Interestingly enough, even though this resolution only shines the light on how US military aid to Israel would be used, most members of the Senate voted to table to resolution in a 72 – 11 vote. Both Michigan Senators Gary Peters and Debbie Stabenow voted to table the resolution.

Part of the reason for tabling the vote is summed up well in an article from the Roll Call:

Senate Foreign Relations Chairman Benjamin L. Cardin, D-Md., made the motion to table Sanders’ motion, averting a floor vote on an issue that many Democrats wanted to avoid. Though many of them acknowledge the civilian cost of Israel’s effort to eliminate the Palestinian militant group Hamas from the Gaza Strip, they also don’t want to be seen as critics of Israel’s response to Hamas’ deadly attack on Oct. 7, 2023.

The last sentence in Sen. Cardin’s comment underscores what is at issue here…….the fact that most Democratic politicians do not want to be seen as critical of Israel. The unconditional support for Israel in the federal government is so powerful, that politicians want to avoid even the appearance of being critical of Israel. This fact is reflected in the data below, provided by Open Secrets, which shows that since 1990, the Democrats have always been the larger recipient of Pro-Israel PACs.