Michigan Senators Gary Peters and Debbie Stabenow voted to fund genocide

On Tuesday, Michigan Senators Gary Peters and Debbie Stabenow voted to spend $95 billion of US taxpayers money to fund war and militarism, providing funding to Ukraine, Taiwan and Israel.

It is disconcerting that both Democratic Senators from Michigan voted for more bloodshed, particularly regarding the money being allocated to Israel. Israel has killed roughly 34,000 Palestinians since early October of 2023, with 14,500 of that total being Palestinian children. Both Peters and Stabenow released statements on why they voted for the $95 billion to go towards militarism, war and genocide.

Here is what Senator Peters statement says:

“This legislation is vital, not only to U.S. national security, but to democracy and the future of the free world. As we speak, the people of Ukraine are fighting for their lives with dwindling supplies against Putin’s relentless, brutal war on their country. Israel is facing attacks from Iran and its proxies like Hamas and Hezbollah who seek to destroy it. Meanwhile, the Chinese Communist Party continues its aggression toward Taiwan, one of our key economic allies. This is a critical moment that history will remember, and I voted to stand with our allies.”

It is interesting that Senator Peters uses words like democracy, and free world. All buzz words, which Peters never clarifies or substantiates. Also, how is the funding war and genocide provide security to the US? 

Senator Stabenow’s statement isn’t much different:

“Today’s vote sends a message at a critical time in our history about America’s standing in the world – that we are still a beacon of democracy for nations everywhere, that our country remains grounded in our American values of freedom, that our allies can continue to count on our leadership, and that our enemies know our resolve. Although the path to final passage was painstaking, today’s vote is a victory for our national security and democracy across the globe.”

Both Michigan Senators use the same bullshit buzz words, words that are directed at voters here in Michigan. People here still believe that the US is still a beacon of democracy for nations everywhere. However, if you ask people in the Global South they all have a different take on what the US means to them. For people in Cuba, Mexico, Venezuela, Colombia, Iraq, Iran, Pakistan, Indonesia, East Timor, the Congo, Sudan, the Philippines, and many other countries, the US is an imperialist nation that backs dictators and corrupt government, that is the largest weapons trafficker on the planet, that destroys local economies and extracts oil and precious minerals. Check out how many times the US has militarily invaded another country since 1890, as documented by Professor Zoltan Grossman.

I do agree with one phrase that Senator Peters and Senator Stabenow used in their statements, that we are in a “critical moment that history.” We are in a critical moment in history, where the US is providing weapons, billions in other forms of military aid, place diplomatic cover to Israel so they can brutalize a civilian population in Palestine, in what the international community identifies as genocide. This will be the legacy of both Gary Peters and Debbie Stabenow, since they have both voted to provide billions in US military aid and weapons to Israel as it prosecutes a genocidal occupation of Palestine. Shame on the both of them!