Keller @ Large: Getting funds for Israel through Congress could be harder than it seems
BOSTON - At pro-Palestinian rallies like one in Cambridge on Monday, there's a common demand: end U.S. military and financial aid to Israel.
President Joe Biden said on Tuesday: "Let there be no doubt, the U.S. has Israel's back." But some local Democrats seem wary of funding a wider conflict.
At a pro-Israel rally the day before, Sen. Ed Markey - a normally reliable vote for support for Israel - was nearly booed off the stage when he said, "there must be a de-escalation of the current violence."
His delegation colleague Rep. Jake Auchincloss (D-Fourth District) followed Markey to the stage and noted: "Israel did not ask America to de-escalate on September 12, 2001."
To Republican Jewish Coalition CEO Matt Brooks, giving Israel what it needs to fight Hamas is a no-brainer. "This is not a time for partisan politics," he told us.
But amid signs the White House wants to bundle increased aid for Israel with fresh funding for Ukraine's war effort, backlash is emerging on the right. Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley tweeted: "Israel is facing existential threat. Any funding for Ukraine should be redirected to Israel immediately."
Says Nebraska Republican Rep. Don Bacon: "I support both, but I think it would be a mistake to bundle the two. But it sounds to me like the administration wants to put the two together."
"I'm not sure that there is a difference in terms of U.S. interest," said Brooks. "We have a clear and compelling interest to strengthen and make sure the relationship between the U.S. and Israel stays strong in a dangerous part of the world, but we also have a clear and compelling interest in not allowing Putin to win in Ukraine."
For now, support for Israel may seem solid in the wake of the Hamas atrocities. But time - and the human carnage sure to result from full-scale war - could easily erode that backing.
Just look at what's happened to political and public support for aid to Ukraine, still strong but much less so than it once was.