Reps. Maxine Dexter (D-OR) and Valerie Foushee (D-NC), two House Democrats who received significant backing from the AIPAC-aligned United Democracy Project super PAC in their primary races against far-left opponents, announced this week that they would support efforts to block the transfer of offensive weapons to Israel.

They join a third UDP-supported Democrat, Rep. Robert Garcia (D-CA), who indicated his potential support for such a policy more than a year ago.

The latest moves highlight the growing anger among Democrats with Israel’s continued war operations in Gaza — and the limited efficacy in advocating for a strong U.S.-Israel relationship towards liberals at a time when public support for the Jewish state within the Democratic party is declining. 

Dexter, who represents a deep-blue Portland, Ore. district, benefitted from more than $2 million in UDP donations provided during her 2024 primary race to other PACs supporting Dexter and attacking her opponent, Susheela Jayapal. 

Dexter said in a statement this week that the U.S. “must halt the transfer of offensive weapons to Israel and ensure immediate, sufficient and sustained humanitarian aid into Gaza,” also stating that “Palestinians and Israelis alike have the right to security, safety, self-determination and peace. Netanyahu’s war crimes against the Palestinians in Gaza shatter any path toward those aims.”

She added that “Netanyahu clearly believes U.S. support comes without conditions. Israel has the right to defend itself from attack, but it does not have the right to commit gross violations of human rights or obstruct humanitarian aid to innocent civilians. Netanyahu’s government is doing both and worse. … We must use all means necessary to stop Netanyahu’s government from perpetuating these crimes against humanity.”

Jayapal, the sister of Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-WA), supported conditions on U.S. aid to Israel during her campaign. Dexter, in an interview during her campaign in 2024, told Jewish Insider she would not support imposing additional conditions on U.S. aid to Israel that don’t apply to all U.S. allies.

Dexter said “Israel had the right to defend itself, they were obligated to defend itself” while also calling for a negotiated ceasefire and raising concerns about the humanitarian situation in Gaza. She said she did not believe that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was interested in peace.

Asked about her apparent turnaround on the issue, Dexter said in a statement to JI that she would apply a similar standard to any ally.

“It is clear to me that Israel has violated international humanitarian law in the way it has prosecuted this war,” Dexter said. “The withholding of offensive arms, in light of these violations, is a standard to which I would and will continue to hold any American ally. The safety, security, and peace for Israelis and Palestinians alike depend on Netanyahu’s government being held accountable.”

Dexter also voted earlier this year against sanctions on the International Criminal Court, the first major Israel-related vote for new members in the current Congress.

Foushee, whose Durham, N.C.-based district is among the most progressive in the state, was among the first beneficiaries of UDP assistance during her 2022 primary campaign. The group spent $2.1 million supporting her campaign against progressive Nida Allam and former “American Idol” finalist Clay Aiken. Allam had a record of anti-Israel activism even before her campaign for Congress.

Foushee this week announced she would sponsor legislation “to prevent the sale of offensive weapons to Israel.”

“A ceasefire and de-escalation are urgently needed to ensure the sufficient flow of aid into Gaza and protect innocent civilians at aid delivery sites from military attacks,” Foushee said on X. “We simply cannot continue to provide the Israeli government with weapons when they are not being used in accordance with international law to maximize the protection of civilians in Gaza.”

Foushee’s campaign said this week that she would not accept further support from AIPAC.

Her new stance on U.S. aid to Israel comes as the culmination of a series of more critical stances she’s taken since first being elected to office, though she maintained AIPAC’s endorsement in the 2024 cycle.

In June 2023, Foushee signed onto a letter opposing Israel’s entry into the Visa Waiver Program, but subsequently told Jewish Insider she’d done so by mistake. As early as December 2023, Foushee signed onto a letter calling for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.

She has voted against numerous measures since the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas-led attacks on Israel cracking down on Iran, the Houthis and the International Criminal Court. And she voted against several measures to combat antisemitism including the Antisemitism Awareness Act and a resolution describing the slogan “from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free” as antisemitic.

Even so, she traveled to Israel in March 2024 with an AIPAC-affiliated delegation and voted in favor of supplemental aid to Israel.

In December 2024, she signed onto a letter led by other lawmakers accusing Israel of failing to fulfill the conditions of U.S. arms sales policy and law, and co-led a resolution in June condemning the humanitarian situation in Gaza.

Foushee’s office also did not respond to a request for comment.

Asked about Dexter and Foushee’s positions, AIPAC didn’t address them directly, but said that the U.S. should not abandon Israel.

“If American leaders desire to end the conflict, they should take concrete steps to pressure Hamas to free the hostages and surrender,” the group said in a statement. “This is not a moment to abandon an American ally that is battling Hamas terrorists who launched this war with the barbaric attack of October 7.”

A UDP spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment.

Garcia — who was backed by around $500,000 in UDP spending in 2022 — has also taken a more critical stance since taking office. Though he ran as the more moderate Democrat in his campaign, Garcia has frequently aligned with the left since taking office.

He signed onto a letter in April 2024 calling for the U.S. to withhold offensive arms transfers from Israel if it “fails to sufficiently mitigate the harm to innocent civilians in Gaza … and if it fails to facilitate — or arbitrarily denies or restricts — the transport and delivery of humanitarian aid into Gaza.”

His office did not respond to a request for comment on whether he currently supports suspending offensive aid. He voted, after that letter, in favor of supplemental aid for Israel and traveled to Israel with the AIPAC-affiliated American Israel Education Foundation.

Garcia called for a ceasefire on Nov. 11, 2023, and announced last year he would boycott Netanyahu’s address to Congress. Like Foushee, he has opposed many of the measures the House has voted on in the past two years aimed at countering Iran and its proxies, and several of the antisemitism-related measures.