In the wake of the recent Hanukkah attack in Australia, Democratic Party members were swift to express their condemnation.
However, according to Fox News, Democratic Senator John Fetterman has voiced concerns that this response is at odds with the party's history of anti-Israel rhetoric. The mass shooting, which occurred at Sydneys Bondi Beach, claimed the lives of at least 15 individuals and left dozens injured.
Australian authorities have identified the incident as a terrorist attack aimed at the Jewish community, prompting a wave of condemnation from leading Democrats and calls to counter antisemitism.
However, Senator Fetterman, a staunch supporter of Israel, has warned that the Democratic Party's discord over the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas could have serious implications. He criticized his fellow Democrats for their endorsement of what he perceives as overtly hostile, anti-Israel rhetoric, which he believes is increasingly becoming a part of the party's platform.
The recent attack is likely to heighten pressure on the Democratic Party, which is already grappling with internal divisions over the IsraelHamas conflict, a topic that could significantly influence its 2026 electoral messaging. Following the mass shooting in Australia, Democrats were quick to join Republicans in sounding the alarm about the escalating threat of antisemitism.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., who is Jewish, stated, "As I have warned repeatedly, antisemitism is a scourge around the world that must be condemned loudly and fought vigorously at every turn." House Minority Leader Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., echoed this sentiment, asserting, "It is our collective responsibility to aggressively eradicate the poison of antisemitism whenever and wherever it is found."
Potential 2028 Democratic presidential nominee, California Gov. Gavin Newsom, expressed solidarity with the global Jewish community, stating, "We stand with the Jewish community worldwide against a rising tide of antisemitic violence and hate." Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, another potential Democratic presidential candidate, declared, "Antisemitism has no place in this world."
Progressive icon Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, who may also run for president in 2028, expressed her horror at the attack, stating, "As antisemitism rises across the world, we have a moral obligation to stamp it out everywhere it exists." Democratic National Committee (DNC) Chair Ken Martin also condemned the attack, stating, "We must all vigorously condemn antisemitism and hate at every turn, and the perpetrators of these evil acts must be brought to justice."
Despite the unanimous condemnation of the attack by Democrats, the party has been far from unified in its response to the violence in Gaza, which was triggered by a brutal attack by Hamas on Israel on October 7, 2023. The attack resulted in the deaths of nearly 1,200 Israelis and the abduction of over 250 individuals. In the two years following the attack, over 70,000 Palestinians, many of them women and children, were killed during Israel's military response, as reported by the Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza.
The Democratic Party's internal divisions over the conflict were evident at the DNC's summer meeting in August, when a party committee voted on a symbolic resolution calling for an arms embargo and suspension of U.S. military aid to Israel, a long-standing American ally in the Middle East.
Senator Fetterman expressed his confusion over the divide within the party. Referring to anti-Israel comments from some on the left, Fetterman stated in an interview on Fox News' "Sunday Morning Futures," "I cant imagine why so many parts of people in my party continue to back away or to kind of deflect condemning these kinds of horrific acts of terrorism."
This statement underscores the ongoing tension within the Democratic Party regarding its stance on Israel and the fight against antisemitism.
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