Senate to vote on Sanders resolutions blocking Israel aid on Thursday
Of the six new Democrats who have joined the Senate since Sanders forced similar votes last year, two indicated to JI that they would oppose the resolutions
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Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee Chairman Bernie Sanders (I-VT) talks about lowering health care costs during an event highlighting the Biden administration's work to lower the cost of breathing treatments for asthma and COPD patients in the Indian Treaty Room in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on April 03, 2024 in Washington, DC.
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) plans to force Senate votes on two resolutions blocking $8.8 billion in U.S. aid to Israel on Thursday, Sanders confirmed to Jewish Insider on Wednesday.
This will be the second time in recent months that Sanders has sought to block some arms transfers to Israel and forced a major Israel policy test for Senate Democrats, who were divided on the legislation last year. In the previous Congress, 19 Democrats voted for at least one of a series of three resolutions that Sanders introduced. No Republicans supported them.
Six Democrats have joined the Senate since those previous votes; two of them have indicated to JI that they would not vote for the resolutions, but the others’ plans remain unclear.
Sen. Elissa Slotkin (D-MI) told Jewish Insider on Tuesday that she had not yet studied the resolutions in detail, but indicated she was inclined to oppose them.
“I generally think when you’ve got groups like the Houthis shooting ballistic missiles, you need to defend yourself,” she said, referring to the Houthis’ ongoing attacks on Israel. “That’s how I’ve always voted in the House. I don’t know if I’ve voted on this exact resolution before, but I’ll stay consistent.”
A spokesperson for Sen. Adam Schiff (D-CA) told JI last year that he would not have supported Sanders’ last set of resolutions had he been in the Senate then.
Sen. Andy Kim (D-NJ) said that he was still deciding how he would vote on the resolutions. “I haven’t made a final decision on that front just yet,” the New Jersey senator told JI on Wednesday.
Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) said that he hasn’t examined the resolutions yet. Sens. Angela Alsobrooks (D-MD) and Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-DE) did not respond to requests for comment.
It’s also not clear whether current events in the region could lead other Democrats to change their votes from the last Congress.