US Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer's warning that Israel risks becoming a “pariah” for its war in Gaza, and his call for new elections in the country, sent shockwaves from Washington to Jerusalem.
President Joe Biden called it a “good speech” and said Schumer had expressed a “serious concern” shared by many Americans.
Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called the speech “totally inappropriate” in an interview with CNN.
Here are some of the latest reactions to comments from Washington's highest-ranking Jewish official:
Democratic Senator Ben Cardinwho chairs the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, defended Schumer's recent comments on NBC's “Meet the Press” on Sunday.
“Senator Schumer's speech came from his heart: what he believes is necessary for peace,” Cardin said.
The Maryland senator said Schumer was simply asking that Israelis be able to vote for whoever they want as leader, and that this will only happen once Israel has “overcome Hamas.”
Former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi He praised Schumer's comments as an “act of courage” and an “act of love for Israel” in an interview on CNN's “State of the Union.”
“The prime minister's presentation demonstrated the need for Chuck Schumer's speech,” Pelosi said.
The California Democrat added that Netanyahu must be “unaware or misinformed” of the humanitarian situation in Gaza after the prime minister claimed that Israel was allowing enough aid into Gaza.
Republican Representative Michael McCaulChairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the House of Representatives, criticized Schumer's comments as “inappropriate” and “shameful” on Sunday.
“There's a way to talk about your differences, not to bring down a democratic country,” the Texas Republican said on “Fox News Sunday.” McCaul characterized the speech as indicative of a “split in the Democratic Party” between what he called a “pro-Palestinian, anti-Israel faction” and those who support Israel.
McCaul said an offensive on Rafah would allow Israel to eliminate “high-value targets” in Hamas.
In the election campaign: Former President Donald Trump criticized Schumer, suggesting that Israel is loyal to the Democratic Party “to a fault.” Asked on Fox News whether the majority leader's words amounted to the United States telling a sovereign ally how to run its government, Trump responded: “100%. There's no question about it and they don't know where to go. They're very bad”. for Israel.”
Trump has repeatedly been criticized for parroting the anti-Semitic trope that American Jews, a population that has historically voted Democratic by wide margins, have dual loyalties to the United States and Israel.
