Michigan Senators Peters and Stabenow voted against the halt of US weapons to Israel, thus perpetuating Israel’s genocidal campaign against the Palestinians
On Wednesday, the US Senate overwhelmingly rejected a set of Joint Resolutions of Disapproval (JRDs) that Senator Bernie Sanders had introduced to halt US weapons to Israel because of the atrocities happening in Gaza.
These JRDs oppose multiple offensive arms sales to Israel that have been used in violation of U.S. law and policy. They include:
S.Res.111 – focusing on 120mm Tank Rounds – $774.1 million – led by Sens. Sanders, Welch, Merkley, and Schatz
S.Res.112 – focusing on Medium Tactical Vehicles – $583.1 million – led by Sens. Sanders, Welch
S.Res.113 – focusing on 120mm High Explosive Mortar Rounds – $61.1 million – led by Sens. Sanders, Welch, and Merkley
S.Res.114 – focusing on F-15IA Fighter Aircraft and Upgrades – $18.82 billion – led by Sens. Sanders
S.Res.111 – focusing on 120mm Tank Rounds – $774.1 million – led by Sens. Sanders, Welch, Merkley, and Schatz
S.Res.115 – focusing on Joint Direct Attack Munitions (JDAMs) – $262 million – led by Sens. Sanders, Welch, and Merkley
S.Res.116 – focusing on Anti-Jam and Global Positioning System (GPS) Receivers – led by Sens. Sanders, Welch, and Merkley
The Senate only voted on S Res. 111, 113 and 115. According to Common Dreams, “The first vote was 18-79, with Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.) voting present and Sens. Mike Braun (R-Ind.) and JD Vance (R-Ohio)—the vice-president-elect—not voting. In addition to Sanders (I-Vt.), those in favor were: Sens. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), Tim Kaine (D-Va.), Angus King (I-Maine), Ben Ray Lujan (D-N.M.), Ed Markey (D-Mass.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), Jon Ossoff (D-Ga.), Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), Tina Smith (D-Minn.), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), and Peter Welch (D-Vt.).”
The second vote was 19-78—Sen. George Helmy (D-N.J.) joined those voting for the resolution. The third vote was 17-80.
This means that all of the Republican Senators and the majority of Democrats voted to oppose the halting of US weapons to Israel.
Critics of Israel’s U.S.-backed offensive in Gaza knew they were never going to actually secure a majority of votes.
But while acknowledging the GOP’s unwillingness to question Israel and the intensely pro-Israel views also held by a large proportion of Democrats, skeptics of the Israeli campaigns instead sought to demonstrate a sizeable degree of opposition to continued U.S. involvement in the wars.
According to HuffPost, “The Biden administration pushed hard to convince senators to keep endorsing arms deals for Israel.
On Tuesday, the White House sent a document of talking points to Congress that claimed lawmakers who voted for the bills blocking the sales would be aiding Hamas, HuffPost revealed.
The administration also dispatched Secretary of State Tony Blinken to Capitol Hill for a briefing with legislators prior to the vote.”
Michigan Senators Stabenow and Peters
Both Michigan Senators, Senator Gary Peters and Senator Debbie Stabenow, voted against the resolutions that would have halted US weapons to Israel. Their votes have been consistently in support of Israeli throughout the tenures in the US Senate.
According to Open Secrets, they have both received sizable amounts of campaign funding from the Pro-Israel groups.
Senator Stabenow has received $840,482
Senator Peters has received $626,444
These amounts of money from Pro-Israel groups might not seem like a lot, but in the period between 1990 and 2024, Senators Stabenow and Peters rank in the top 50 recipients of Pro-Israel funding out of the several hundred people who have been US Senators since 1990.
The decision to not support legislation to halt US weapons to Israel will be part of the legacy of Senator’s Stabenow and Peters.
Their vote against halting US weapons to Israel means they support the killing of more Palestinian children, Palestinian civilians, the destruction of Palestinian homes, schools and hospital, and it means they support genocide….. Continues
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