OpEd: On Being a Democrat and a Supporter of Israel

By Halie Soifer

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Last month, I attended a White House reception for Prime Minister Netanyahu during his visit to Washington, D.C. Recognizing there would be few Democrats in attendance, I was representing my organization, the Jewish Democratic Council of America, in an effort to send a message that America’s commitment to Israel remains bipartisan. Looking around the room, filled with Evangelical Christian leaders and Republicans, it became painfully clear just how much the U.S.-Israel relationship has become politicized, personalized, and divisive under Trump.

This event made me realize that it’s time to adapt the narrative of what it means to be pro-Israel in 2025. American support of Israel should not be about rubber-stamping the agenda of Netanyahu, just as American patriotism should not be equated with blind devotion to Trump. With strong disapproval of both leaders among a majority of Jewish Americans and Democrats, we need to broaden the definition of what it means to stand with Israel outside the narrow lens of what serves Netanyahu and Trump’s political agendas.

In 2025, being pro-Israel should mean standing with the Israeli people in the aftermath of October 7, supporting Israel’s security as it faces ongoing regional threats, remaining deeply committed to Israel’s future as a Jewish and democratic state, and recognizing there’s no future for Hamas as a part of any solution to this conflict.

It also means expressing concern about the war – and continued captivity of hostages – which has gone on for too long. Calls to address the acute humanitarian crisis in Gaza don’t make someone anti-Israel. American Jews are also concerned about the crisis in Gaza, though there’s a clear double standard when it comes to assessing support of Israel among Democrats.

For too long, Trump has chastised the vast majority of American Jews, exploiting support for Israel as a political wedge issue to divide us and turn Israel into a partisan issue. In 2019, he called all Jews who vote for Democrats, historically constituting more than 70% of Jewish voters, uninformed or disloyal. The following year, Trump declared that he moved the U.S. Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem “for the evangelicals,” perhaps as a jab at American Jews for our alleged disloyalty. Last year, he had the audacity to assert that any Jew who votes for Democrats “hates Israel” and “hates their religion.” As if that wasn’t enough, he added that Jews who support Democrats should be “ashamed of themselves, because Israel will be destroyed” with Democrats. Throughout 2024, Trump continued to frame Israel’s survival as contingent on his electoral success.

Netanyahu has also played into this personalized and politicized fallacy of what it means to be pro-Israel in America over the past decade. It began with his collusion with House Republicans to address a Joint Session of Congress in 2015, when he unsuccessfully lobbied Congress against then-President Obama’s Iran nuclear agreement. Most Democrats rightfully felt ostracized by Netanyahu’s blatant interference in our domestic and partisan politics. Years later, Netanyahu took for granted having a self-declared Zionist in the White House with President Biden, as well as Biden and Democrats’ staunch support of Israel in the aftermath of October 7. One year ago, I was proud to be a part of the effort to ensure the 2024 Democratic Party Platform was stronger on Israel than it’s ever been, reaffirming Democrats’ commitment to military assistance to Israel and offering “ironclad” support amid the ongoing war with Hamas.

This included more than $15 billion in emergency security assistance used largely to bolster Israel’s missile defense, proposed by President Biden, which Republicans delayed for six months and Democrats overwhelmingly supported in April 2024. Biden was also proud to be the first U.S. president to visit Israel during wartime to demonstrate his support of the Israeli people after the attacks. Despite Trump’s decision to skip Israel on his recent trip to the Middle East and overlook Israel’s security concerns in a series of deals with regional actors – including a ceasefire with the Houthis and recognition of the new Syrian government – Netanyahu has made no secret that he prefers Donald Trump. His obsequious Nobel Peace Prize nomination of Trump, and Trump’s recent call for corruption charges against Netanyahu to be thrown out, are the latest demonstrations of their mutually self-serving political bromance.

The problem with this construct is that the U.S.-Israel relationship has clearly been politicized and personalized by two men who will not be in power forever, whose agendas are not necessarily aligned with the views or priorities of a majority of Jewish Americans. According to recent polling by the Jewish Voters Resource Center, 92% of American Jewish voters believe that one can be pro-Israel while also critical of policies of the current Israeli government (which is the most extreme right-wing government in Israel’s history). American Jews clearly understand that support of Israel is not synonymous with support of Netanyahu, whom nearly two-thirds of Jewish voters view unfavorably. Disapproval of Netanyahu is only overtaken by widespread American Jewish voter disdain for Donald Trump (74%).

According to this same poll – conducted after the last ceasefire between Israel and Hamas collapsed – 62% of Jewish voters believe Netanyahu renewed military action in Gaza for personal political reasons, rather than national security. Combine that with growing concern among American Jews about the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, and it appears that the majority of Jewish Americans and Israelis agree that this war must come to an end in a way that ensures the return of hostages. According to July polling in Israel, 74% of Israelis, including 60% of people who voted for Netanyahu’s coalition, back an agreement with Hamas that would release all the hostages in exchange for an end to the war in Gaza.

So why are recent calls from Democrats – including a letter signed by nearly all Senate Democrats last month – calling for a ceasefire, increased humanitarian aid, an end to Hamas rule in Gaza, and the return of the hostages, viewed as anything other than pro-Israel? Have we gotten to a point where being pro-Israel means one cannot criticize the policies of the current Israeli government? That’s not the case in Israel, as demonstrated by rancorous debate in the Knesset and the loud and frequent protests against Netanyahu and the policies of his government, and it shouldn’t be the case in the United States.

The vast majority of Democrats in Congress remain committed to Israel’s security, defensive military assistance, and the U.S.-Israel relationship. Of course, there are some Democrats in Congress who don’t share this view, though they remain on the margins, outside the mainstream. Given recent Senate votes on Senator Bernie Sanders’ (I-VT) resolutions of disapproval – which our organization has consistently opposed, even as more Democrats supported them  – it is important to consider the substance of the Senate debate. Democrats made clear that their concern is the dire humanitarian crisis in Gaza, which doesn’t contradict Democrats’ longstanding support of the Israeli people, security, and right to self-defense. Most of the Democrats who voted with Sanders have strong records of supporting U.S. security assistance for Israel. At the same time, Democrats are willing to speak out when they disagree with policies of the Israeli government, which puts them squarely in line with most Jewish Americans and many Israelis.

Americans can and must continue to support Israel without having to fully endorse every policy of Netanyahu’s right-wing Israeli coalition. We can oppose settler violence, a military takeover of Gaza City, annexation of the West Bank, and the erosion of democratic norms, while also supporting Israel’s fight against Hamas. We can call for an end to the war and the suffering of innocent Palestinians in Gaza while also demanding the immediate release of every Israeli hostage. And we can reiterate that a two-state solution – however distant it may be – remains the only way to ensure Israel’s future as a Jewish and democratic state, despite the fact that it’s been completely abandoned by Netanyahu and Trump and their respective governments.

As proud pro-Israel Democrats, we are fighting to ensure the ties between our two countries and peoples continue to endure, despite our current political tumult and leadership. We also understand that being pro-Israel in 2025 can mean expressing concern about the direction of the war in Gaza – an approach that has been adopted by Democrats in Congress, an overwhelming majority of whom also strongly support Israel’s security and right to self-defense. Despite what Trump and Netanyahu may want you to believe, this approach – consistent with the views of a majority of Jewish American voters – is exactly what it means to be pro-Israel in 2025.

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Halie Soifer is the chief executive officer of the Jewish Democratic Council of America.