Screenshot from Twitter. The Jewish Democratic Council of America (JDCA) and the American Jewish Congress are among those criticizing Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) for suggesting that United States aid to Israel could be cut.
Ocasio-Cortez criticized Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as a “Trump-like figure” and an example of the rise of “authoritarianism across the world” on “Yahoo! News’ “Skullduggery” podcast on April 15. When Ocasio-Cortez was asked if the United States should cut aid to Israel, she replied, “I think it’s on the table. I think it is certainly on the table. And I think it’s something that can be discussed.”
The freshman congresswoman added that she hopes “to play a facilitating role in this conversation and a supportive role in this conversation.”
JDCA said in a statement, “We are pleased Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez recognizes she is NOT a leader on Israel in Congress. We recommend she engage with Dem leaders Eliot Engel, Nita Lowey, & Congressman Ted Deutch before contemplating the future of US military aid to Israel. US-Israel ties must supersede politics.”
Similarly, Jack Rosen, president of the American Jewish Congress, said in a statement, “The American Jewish Congress strongly opposes any cut to the U.S. security or financial assistance to Israel, as implied by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) in an interview with Yahoo News “Skullduggery” podcast today.”
“American financial and security assistance to Israel is first and foremost a way to protect U.S. lives and interests in the Middle East,” Rosen later added. “Israel serves as a stabilizer in a turbulent region and is on the front-lines of countering some of the U.S.’s most dangerous enemies such as Iran and its malign proxies Hezbollah and Hamas.”
Ocasio-Cortez has previously accused Israel of conducting a “massacre” on the border of the Gaza Strip and has lamented the “occupation of Palestine.”
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