Senate Democrats slam Israel in major shift of tone

Mainstream Senate Democrats are starting to echo their party's base, which has soured on supporting Israel.Zoom in: Sen. Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.), a moderate Democrat from a swing state, this week slammed the Israeli government for the lack of humanitarian aid in Gaza and violence by Israeli settlers in the West Bank."There are times when, to me, it doesn't look like [Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu] is prioritizing the hostage situation," Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) told Axios. "Certainly, there's times when it looks like Hamas does not want a deal.""I think it's way overdue to have Democratic members of Congress speak up and speak out about the humanitarian disaster in Gaza," Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), another moderate who has criticized Israel since the start of the war, told Axios on Wednesday.The big picture: The comments are part of a significant shift in tone toward Netanyahu from the center of the Democratic Party.Slotkin's post on X this week addressed the killing of an American by Israeli settlers in the West Bank and slammed Netanyahu for a lack of accountability.Slotkin, a former CIA analyst who spent time in Iraq, told Axios on Wednesday she has heard "lots of negative feedback" about her post following a "very rough weekend in the Middle East.""I say strong things about Iran and how I'm glad that their nuclear capability has been put back, and I also hear a negative response to that," Slotkin said. "So I just try and objectively call balls and strikes."The other side: Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.) has emerged as one of the strongest pro-Israel voices in the party.Fetterman offered his full support of President Trump's decision to attack Iran last month, saying the U.S. commitment to Israel must be "absolute."The bottom line: Progressive Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) told Axios that lawmakers are starting to understand "this is not just a moral issue, it's a political issue."Van Hollen, a leading Senate Democratic voice against the Netanyahu government, told Axios he's happy to have more Democrats speak up."We've seen a pattern of impunity from the Netanyahu government — no accountability for these killings — and we've seen a pattern of indifference from the U.S. government," Van Hollen said. "I'm glad more people seem to be paying attention."

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