Democrats expressing support for leveraging aid to Israel are “wrong,” Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-NY) told Jewish Insider on Monday.

“We have a $38 billion committment over 10 years for military aid to Israel. The Israelis need it for defense,” Nadler stressed.

At the annual J Street conference in Washington, D.C. last week, several Democratic presidential hopefuls said they would condition U.S. aid to Israel on the Jewish state not annexing any part of the West Bank. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT0 further suggested that Israel will have to “fundamentally change” its policy on Gaza if it wants continued military aid. Former Vice President Joe Biden called the proposal “absolutely outrageous.”

Asked by JI if he agreed with Biden’s critique of his fellow Democrats, Nadler replied, “I think it’s wrong” to condition aid to Israel.

“Whether we approve or disapprove of specific policies, we shouldn’t use military aid as a pressure point on specific policies — because Israel’s security is paramount,” the senior Democrat explained.