(NationRise.com) – According to a The Hill October 31 report, the Democratic Party is currently facing widening division over the war between Israel and the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas. The media outlet pointed out the political fracture has been caused by different points of view on the conflict, along with primary challenges and even growing personal tensions among some Democratic leaders.
The communications director for left-wing group Justice Democrats, Usamah Andrabi, told The Hill that Democrats can’t let the Biden administration keep excusing the killing of Palestinian children in the name of “Israeli defense.” She claimed that if Democrats continue to do so, they’ll be choosing the lives of innocent Israelis over the lives of “innocent Palestinians.”
Expressing the opposite opinion, the president of Democratic Majority for Israel, Mark Mellman, said that Democrats need to stand for the Jewish state, as the party has done over the last few decades. He told The Hill that nearly 95 percent of the Democratic caucus is “strongly pro-Israel,” and noted that a “very small” percentage is not. However, Mellman acknowledged a gradual shift in the opinions held by some Democratic voters and politicians about the Jewish state.
A moment that exacerbated tensions in the party was President Joe Biden’s trip to Israel, right after Hamas’ October 7 attacks, where he expressed his full support for the Israeli government. During an interview with NBC’s “Meet the Press,” Washington Democratic Representative Pramila Jayapal criticized the president and said her caucus will not “support war crimes” committed by the Jewish state.
The division among Democrats on the Israel-Hamas conflict was also shown on October 30, when Indiana Democratic Representative Andre Carson called New Jersey Democratic Representative Josh Gottheimer a “gangster” and a “coward.” Carson said these words during an interview at CNN after Gottheimer blasted Democratic congressmen who voted against a resolution to condemn Hamas and support Israel.
The current political fracture comes at a moment when President Biden’s approval rating among Democrats is weaker than ever, following a double-digit decline in September. According to a Gallup poll, 75 percent of Democrats said they approve of his presidency, representing an 11-point decline from August’s poll.
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