Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a US representative, said on Wednesday that she will oppose any future US military aid to Israel, including for defensive systems.
In a statement on social media, Ocasio-Cortez said that Israel was fully capable of funding “Iron Dome and other defensive systems”, and that “consistent with my voting record to date, I will not support Congress sending more taxpayer dollars and military aid to a government that consistently ignores international law and US law”.
Her remarks on Wednesday follow reports that she pledged to oppose any future military aid to Israel during a New York City Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) forum on Tuesday evening.
“Our allies who need our military aid must understand that we will provide it consistent with the Leahy amendment and the foreign assistance act”, Ocasio-Cortez added, referring to a law which prohibits the US from providing military support to army units that violate human rights.
According to City & State, which obtained a partial recording of the DSA forum, Ocasio-Cortez told members: “I have not once ever voted to authorize funding to Israel, and I will never,” adding that “the Israeli government should be able to finance their own weapons if they seek to arm themselves.”
Support and protect this person and leaders like them. Fight for them.
She was going to vote against it originally. Then supposedly Pelosi convinced her to change her vote. So she voted present.
It’s a difficult spot to be in, given that much of her support relies on the zionists in New York like Schumer, etc in her party… Donors too…
Yeah it must be SOOO difficult to sacrifice tens of thousands of innocent civilians so that she can stay in power and not make her colleagues uncomfortable. Give me a break. She’s an evil Zio neolib like the rest of the Democratic Party. Crocodile tears
Israel should be disarmed.
Hey, it looks like you’re trying to write Destroyed.
One genocide (or several) doesn’t make another one right…
State ≠ people
I have my doubts which the person above me meant.
They could have written state… But they haven’t. “Destroy the state” isn’t something you commonly say now, is it?
Im also not sure what they meant… I actually read it differently the first time… like clippy being a voice of western media, equating not handing arms to Israel with it’s destruction. Just like they equate asking for the end of genocide with antisemitism.
Lemmy has some seriously sick fucks on it so I always have my guard up… They had plenty of opportunity to clarify, but haven’t.
Shoulda done that years ago. We wouldn’t be in this predicament today had that been done. She offered criticism of Israel, but when push came to shove she didn’t rock the boat when voting time came and she changed her vote away from “no” to fund Israel’s Iron Dome.
Better late than never, but the left coalition of the party could have done this 75,000 Palestinians ago.
My favorite Democrat, if only she was the norm.
Come to think of it, she’s the only Democrat who I don’t find infuriating… the last time I researched one (Maxine Waters) I was revolted
Elizabeth Warren also seems to be speaking sense in a group of nonsensical liberals from what I’ve seen
I would vote for her over Hillary Clinton certainly, or Harris.
Or Biden for that matter, he was embarrassing, too
How about any aid at all? That country needs a lot of things, democracy, ethics, morals, but it does not need aid for anything
Her path to getting here was stupid, allowing themselves to get outflanked by MTG was utterly unforced, and her response was worse.
Its great she’s sharpening this point, but how you get to where you end up matters for what amounts to the best progressive hope for 2028 (at least for now). It showed, frankly, a very clumsy ability to navigate politics, ultimately leaving her pissing off both the anti-zionists and the pro-genocide caucuses. Its not a feather in her cap for demonstrating a great ability to navigate issues or lead caucuses.
And that is my primary concern with AOC. She’s one of the best communicators the left has. But she is consistently not a leader on the most important issues we have, and is far too calculating. Genuinely, she reminds me of Pelosi in this manner.
She is definitely not strong on foreign policy, this much was apparent when she spoke on complex issues at the Munich Security Conference and struggled to be fully coherent.
But there’s still time for her to hone it. What was her path to getting here?
She’s trying to create a middle path here where one side is genocide. It’s pretty disconcerting overall but Israel is the last great Western colonial settler project and colonialism is prosperity / glory to the West and genocide / displacement to the Global South (or human majority).
Thankfully there are many here that are against it but clearly she feels that a centrist approach will be more expedient for her political aspirations.
Something as serious as defending taiwan against the second economic and military power china is not something you can talk about without days of reflection. I find ridiculous to be so hard on her for that specific question
But there’s still time for her to hone it. What was her path to getting here?
Oh I’m specifically talking about the MTG proposal, and how AOC instead of leading on the issue, got outflanked by MTG, then voted present (basically “supportive” of defensive weapons, because she didn’t vote in favor of the MTG proposal, interpreted as acting in favor of Israel), then ultimately voting against the full bill.
Basically, she hit all the wrong beats in all the wrong order. Mike breaks it down in greater detail here.
Among the pack, AOC should have been leading Rashida and Omar. Instead AOC got outflanked on the left during the debate phase, to ultimately vote against the resolution. It just shows an inability to read the moment, an inability to lead, and a kind of calculating nature that I think many Americans, truly can-not-stand. Its that Obama/ Clintonian/ Pelosi/ Schumber type of calculating, where instead of doing the morally right thing, even if unpopular, is an afterthought.
It’s like you freak play “fantasy football” with this shit. Is this what activism looks like? Did you update your rankings after this new article?
It seems the blueMAGA are really hating this one. God it’s been a while since I used this word.
I seriously doubt AOC was ever outflanked by MTG, and frankly I have no idea what you mean by that?
Doing a google search “marjorie tayler greene outflank democrats” turns up nothing.
If you are referring to MTG talking sense about the Epstein files an no to the Iran war and distancing herself from MAGA, how the fuck do you Imagine AOC could do anything about that?I seriously doubt AOC was ever outflanked by MTG
Its not something you get to doubt. Its just a thing that happened. I guess you don’t follow politics.
and frankly I have no idea what you mean by that?
So you don’t know what a word/ concept means, and your position on the matter starts by doubting the thing exists. Telling.
Doing a google search “marjorie tayler greene outflank democrats” turns up nothing.
I provided a link. Click it. Its not even text, you can just listen.
I have not once ever voted to authorize funding to Israel, and I will never
Uh… It’s nice that she’s finally gotten the memo, but is she gaslighting us?
Uh… It’s nice that she’s finally gotten the memo, but is she gaslighting us?
The downvoters in this thread do not live in reality.
So to clarify, her main viewpoint is essentially “I voted against reducing these munitions deals with Israel, because these munitions are intended for defensive purpose?”
Edit: Thank the both of you, and anyone else who feels willing to contribute, for providing the explaination.
Basically yes, because AOC accepted the framing that there is such a thing as defensive weapons funding. The rest of her cohort, Talib, Omar, Lee, others, did not make this same mistake.
The article this thread is associated with, is AOC’s pivot on this issue: AOC no longer accepts the framing that weapons funding can be defensive.
It needs to be clear: AOC no longer supports the position in the above tweet. AOC recognized that her position in 2025 regarding defensive weapons was wrong.
I forget what this whole bill/amendment was, but defensive protection of civilians, or the illusion thereof, gives genocidal impunity. If Israel had to pay for some portion of “weapons” given to them then that is less support for Israel which has traditionally received full gifted aid.
When you fund body armour and masks for ICE, you empower them to murder traffic that is too slow to clear. (renee good)
All funding for zionazi Israel is used for genocide. The funding of water for Israel is support for genocide. Republicans say that reimbursing medicare expenses of hospitals in California promoted illegal immigration, even though it is a contractual reimbursement, because if California was forced to repay hospitals, it would have less money somehow to support immigrants.
Go further than that, claw back our tax money to pay for healthcare dammit
Give em a bill and charge interest every year.
If they don’t pay, most of the global economy still runs thru NYC, if we sanction their leaders and oligarchs instead of random ass “settlers” who don’t even have a bank account, we could apply real pressure for their government to pay.
Israel does not owe the US for weapons, because they are gifts. The nominally loans are immediately forgiven by state dept.
Her continued political career depended on clearing that up.
Problem is all of us on the left will not forget her past record and her choices time and time again to side with the status quo, Israel, and the imperialist, capitalist Democratic Party.
would be nice to do palestinian aid and recognize its not a forgone conclusion that it be annexed and if we for some reason do give aid lets at least limit weaponry we might give them and hey lets work to keep aid channels open to palestine. you know. all the stuff we were doing until 2025.
all the stuff we were doing until 2025.
Literally what? This is all stuff Democrats (including AOC herself) were flamed for not doing until 2025.
nope they were flamed for not doing more. we had limits on weapons and getting aid to isreal was a fight even though it got through. there was aid to plestine. we friggen made a dock to get around israel blockading areas. peoples memories are either miniscule or they edit them as it goes by.
meanwhile tankies are calling her (and me) a Zionist for saying the Iron Dome is not just used for protecting military assets and has protected civilians before 🙄
that’s right folks, you’re a Zionist if your anti-Zionism doesn’t ignore facts enough, I guess 🤷♀️
The problem is protection in this case also means protection from the consequences of their actions. As shit as it may sound there’s an active incentive to not causing problems when getting a city block leveled is a potential risk, the same thing can be said for the US which is protected by its relative remoteness from its foes.
So the Iron Dome isn’t just a defensive measure, it’s an emboldening one since it protects Israel from its consequences.
last time i posted statistical facts about Israel from wikipedia my comments got removed from being pro-Zionist and antisemitic.
i love it.
AOC suddenly jumping out a window in 1,2,3…
Sombody guard her because Mosad already is planing to eliminate her.
