Another war on behalf of Israel
Once again, we are being dragged into war upon the insistence of the Israeli government. In 2002, Benjamin Netanyahu went before Congress to say Saddam was advancing toward weapons of mass destruction, including nuclear weapons. The lie propelled us into a costly quagmire of death and destruction, but it did achieve Israel’s goal of defanging a state sponsor of the Palestinian armed resistance. Iran is now in the same position as Iraq was in 2002. Iran, too, has long been in Netanyahu’s crosshairs: he has been telling Congress for thirty years that Iran is “two weeks away” from having a nuclear ballistic missile. US intelligence consistently contradicted him. But 2026 is different. Loyalty, not intelligence, guides Trump’s decision-making.
Israelis overwhelmingly favored Donald Trump to win the American presidency. He received a 100 million dollar donation from pro-Israel billionaire Miriam Adelson. This combined with his racism toward Palestinians and Muslims indicate Trump is willing to do anything to guarantee Israel’s dominance over the region. But how much control does he believe Israel should exert over the Middle East? Just take it from Mike Huckabee, the US ambassador to Israel, who recently said Israel is entitled to taking large parts of Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and of course Palestine.
The Council on Foreign Relations reports the U.S. has provided Israel with $300 billion in military and economic aid since its founding in 1948, a transfer of wealth from the US that exceeds any other nation. As I write this, the US is sending more troops to support Israel in their war on Iran. Unlike Americans, Israelis have high-quality universal healthcare, and live approximately 5 years longer than an average American. This is just one of the many disparities between life in the U.S. and Israel.
The Democrats want to debate the legality and the lack of Congressional approval for this war. They cannot oppose it on principle, since it is receiving sweeping bipartisan support in Israel. How will America ever disentangle itself from Israeli territorial ambitions and prioritize our national finances and individual well-being?