Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez criticized fellow Democratic Representative Jared Moskowitz’s social media post on Wednesday about Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, calling it “shameful.”
On Tuesday in a bipartisan vote, the U.S. Senate passed the $95.3 billion foreign aid package to Israel, Ukraine and Taiwan by a vote of 79-18. The House on Saturday approved the bill’s individual components following months of gridlock. In total, 210 Democrats and 101 Republicans voted in favor of the aid bill, while 112 Republicans voted against it. Biden has since signed the bill into law on Wednesday.
The aid bill, which ties together four bills the House voted on, gives some $61 billion to Ukraine, $26 billion to support Israel and provide humanitarian relief for people in Gaza and $8 billion to help U.S. allies in the Indo-Pacific region and neutralize China.
Meanwhile, Sanders, an independent, voted against the bill on Tuesday along with two other Democratic Senators, as the Vermont senator has previously said he opposed the bill over the lack of conditions on Israel aid.
Celal Gunes/Anadolu/Getty Images
On Tuesday, Sanders took to X, formerly Twitter, to share his thoughts on the bill, stating, “It is a dark day for democracy when the Senate will not even allow a vote on whether U.S. taxpayer dollars should fund Netanyahu’s war against the Palestinian people.
“I am very disappointed, but not surprised, that my amendment to end offensive military aid to Netanyahu’s war machine will not be considered,” Sanders added in a statement.
However, in response, Moskowitz of Florida took aim at Sanders sharing a post on Tuesday on X stating, “Bernie, now do AntiSemitism. Why so quiet?”
On Wednesday, Ocasio-Cortez took to X to defend Sanders and scrutinize Moskowitz’s comments, calling them “shameful.”
“Sen. Sanders’ family was killed in the Holocaust. He dedicates his every moment to realizing tikkun olam. His commitment to protecting innocents in Gaza stems FROM his Jewish values. He and many other Jewish leaders deserve better than to be treated this way. This is shameful,” Ocasio-Cortez wrote on X.
Ocasio-Cortez has also opposed US military aid to Israel, as she previously said the escalating humanitarian crisis in Gaza has “crossed the threshold of intent,” Ocasio-Cortez told CNN’s Jake Tapper on State of the Union last month.
Newsweek reached out to Moskowitz and Sanders’ office via email for comment.
Democrats have been divided over the U.S. response to the Israel-Hamas war, which began after the Palestinian militant group launched thousands of missiles from the Gaza Strip into Israel on October 7, killing 1,200 people. Israel subsequently launched its heaviest-ever airstrikes in Gaza. More than 34,000 Palestinians have been killed, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, The Associated Press said. The rising death toll has led to international calls for a ceasefire.
Critics have accused the Israeli government of war crimes and have called on U.S. lawmakers to withhold aid.
Roughly $26 billion will go to support Israel and provide humanitarian relief for people in besieged Gaza.
About $4 billion of the total would be dedicated to replenishing Israel’s missile defense systems and another roughly $9 billion would go toward humanitarian assistance in Gaza amid the Israel-Hamas war.
Meanwhile, this is not the first time Sanders has been outspoken regarding aid to Israel as he previously spoke more broadly of the need to use the aid as “leverage,” saying that the “blank check approach must end” in an op-ed published in New York Times in November.
The senator went on to list several possible conditions to attach to US aid to Israel, including an end to indiscriminate bombing, a guarantee of no long-term Israeli occupation of Gaza, and a commitment to peace talks for a two-state solution.
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.