A group of U.S. Senate Democrats sent a letter to President Joe Biden urging him to unilaterally announce plans for the U.S. to recognize a Palestinian state and to pressure Israel to do the same.
They include progressive Sens. Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren, Mazie Hirono…and New Hampshire’s Jeanne Shaheen.
“In an effort to reignite U.S. leadership on a diplomatic solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, we call on you to publicly outline a path for the United States to recognize a nonmilitarized Palestinian state,” the letter reads.
“While we have been particularly disappointed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s refusal to engage on a path to a Palestinian state, we believe that this provides even more reason for the Biden Administration to lead and push the Israeli government to take [action].”
The U.S. has supported a two-state solution for Israel and Palestine for decades, so advocating a Palestinian state is not new. However, Shaheen and her colleagues are pushing for the U.S. to move unilaterally rather than in cooperation with Israel, which would be a new approach.
The push from Senate progressives comes in the wake of the Oct. 7 Hamas terror attack and Israel’s military response in Gaza. Many Israel supporters say pushing for a Palestinian state now is rewarding the Hamas terrorists.
Critics also say the senators are undermining the relationship between the U.S. and its strongest ally in the Middle East.
“This is all an effort to split America from Israel. That is the purpose of this [letter[] and these 19 senators,” Commentary Magazine editor John Podhoretz said on the magazine’s Thursday podcast.
Shaheen, 77, declined to answer questions about the letter or her decision to join far-left Democrats like Sanders and Warren on the issue.
The letter urges Biden to “set a path to finally realizing a two-state solution and reinvigorate conversations towards a comprehensive regional peace plan.”
Israel’s leadership, on the other hand, has made it clear their country will not accept a nation on its border led by Hamas or similar organizations and dedicated to its destruction.
Asked about Shaheen’s decision, Rep. Judy Aron (R-Acworth), a Jewish member of the New Hampshire House, said, “I’m not surprised. It’s one of the many votes and decisions that she’s been absolutely wrong on.”
Shaheen has a troubling record on Israel, critics say.
Less than a month after the horrific Hamas terror attack in which innocent Israelis were murdered, beheaded, raped, and taken hostage, Shaheen publicly called for Israel to “pause” its military campaign in Gaza — a boon to Hamas.
And despite years of disclosures about connections between Hamas terrorists and the UNRWA organization distributing aid in Gaza, Shaheen has continuously pushed for U.S. funding of the organization. At least a dozen members of UNRWA were directly involved in the Oct. 7 attack.
