Senator Chuck Schumer (D-NY), as the Senate Majority Leader, made an unusual request on Thursday for Israel to conduct fresh elections with the goal of removing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is not favored by the Biden administration and Democrats.
NBC reported:
“Schumer, the highest-ranking Jewish official in the U.S., said in remarks on the Senate floor that “the Netanyahu coalition no longer fits the needs of Israel after Oct. 7.’ The world has changed — radically — since then, and the Israeli people are being stifled right now by a governing vision that is stuck in the past,” Schumer said in what was billed as a major address by the Democratic leader from New York. Netanyahu has “lost his way,” Schumer continued, “by allowing his political survival to take precedence over the best interests of Israel.” Schumer said that Netanyahu has aligned himself with “far-right extremists” like Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, who he said are “pushing support for Israel worldwide to historic lows.”
Schumer has consistently voiced his disapproval of Netanyahu and even criticized him during a speech denouncing antisemitism in November. However, the recent statement made on Thursday takes it a step further by openly interfering in Israel’s democratic politics. If any foreign country were to take such action against the United States, it would undoubtedly be condemned as foreign election interference. Netanyahu, who briefly stepped down to make way for a center-left coalition, made a political comeback and was elected in November 2022 with a right-wing coalition that achieved one of the largest majorities in the recent electoral history of Israel.
Democrats have harbored resentment towards Netanyahu ever since he publicly opposed President Barack Obama’s nuclear deal with Iran. This deal provided billions of dollars to the Iranian regime for its terrorist activities and would have allowed Iran to become a nuclear power within a decade, even if it fully complied with the terms of the agreement. Netanyahu has also opposed President Joe Biden’s proposal to establish a Palestinian state as the outcome of the ongoing conflict, which was initiated by Hamas terrorists. Additionally, Netanyahu has pushed back against Biden’s warnings not to attack Hamas in the town of Rafah.
Following his election in November 2022, President Biden chose not to meet with Netanyahu in an attempt to isolate him. However, Biden’s stance softened towards Netanyahu in September 2023 when the possibility of a Saudi-Israeli peace deal emerged, offering a potential foreign policy achievement for Biden. Furthermore, Biden visited Israel in October after the Hamas attack.
Nevertheless, Biden has recently publicly criticized Netanyahu, stating that he is doing more harm than good for Israel. Just last week, Biden was caught on a hot mic saying that he had advised Netanyahu to have a “come to Jesus” meeting. Vice President Kamala Harris also indicated her desire to remove Netanyahu from power when she emphasized the importance of distinguishing between Israel’s government and its people, as if the latter had not recently elected the former.
