(C) Daily Kos This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . Schumer calls for new Israeli elections [1] ['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.'] Date: 2024-03-14 In case you missed it, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), gave a speech today and shared some thoughts on the Israeli/Gaza situation and Bibi specifically. www.huffpost.com/… www.bbc.com/... Senator Schumer specifically called for new Israeli elections. From the BBC article: "As a democracy, Israel has the right to choose its own leaders, and we should let the chips fall where they may," Mr Schumer said. "But the important thing is that Israelis are given a choice. There needs to be a fresh debate about the future of Israel." "In my opinion, that is best accomplished by holding an election," he added. Israel is next due to hold a general election by October 2026. From the Huffpost article: Netanyahu, Schumer continued, “has lost his way by allowing his political survival to take precedence over the best interests of Israel.” Schumer also specifically called out Israeli ministers who he deemed radical & extreme for openly advocating violence against Palestinian settlers in the West Bank. From Huffpost: Schumer explicitly called out Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir as the extremist elements in Netanyahu’s government who must go. He declared that both ministers, who represent far-right settler parties, “openly” support violence by settlers in the West Bank against Palestinians. “If extremists continue to unduly influence Israeli policy, then the administration should use tools at its disposal to make sure our support for Israel is aligned with our broader goal of achieving long-term peace and stability in the region,” Schumer said. Schumer also called for Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, 88, to step down. Abbas recently appointed his former advisor as Prime Minister. The Majority Leader criticised Hamas for tactics that increase civilian deaths, and said he is disappointed that media coverage here seems to exclusively blame Israel for the high number civilian deaths in the conflict. Which, by some estimates, has now killed more children than all other conflicts world-wide over the last four years. www.huffpost.com/… Initially, I was really optimistic about this speech from Schumer. I mean, this level of direct criticism of Likud and Bibi for their extremism from the highest ranking elected official of Jewish heritage in the US, and the Senate Majority Leader, must have had the OK from the Biden Administration. Right? No way Chuck went rogue. Right? Alas, perhaps not. From the BBC: Nonetheless, the White House was quick to distance itself from Mr Schumer's comments. Spokesperson John Kirby said that while the Senate leader had a right to his opinion, administration officials were focused on working with Israel on its defence. At least that is a dodge and not a direct repudiation, right? I mean, put me in the camp that feels the Administration had to know it was coming and was OK with it, even if they could not openly endorse the position. This is an escalation, albeit a rhetorical one. However, you can also put me in the camp that want actions, not just words. I am certainly not in the "words are wind" camp within a diplomatic/political context, but it appears many Biden Administration critics are: www.commondreams.org/... Abdullah Hammoud, the Democratic mayor of Dearborn, Michigan—the largest U.S. city with a majority Arab population—said on CNN that "words are not enough, what we want to see is actual change in policy." I was surprised there was not a diary up on this yet. I have not written one in a long time. And likely under a previous account, so go easy on me if I messed anything up. [END] --- [1] Url: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2024/3/14/2229490/-Schumer-threatens-break-with-Bibi?pm_campaign=front_page&pm_source=more_community&pm_medium=web Published and (C) by Daily Kos Content appears here under this condition or license: Site content may be used for any purpose without permission unless otherwise specified. via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds: gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/dailykos/