Alex Kane on the Democrat fantasy about blaming Netanyahu for the Gaza catastrophe

[Senator Chuck] Schumer’s address is the most notable of several recent public statements in which Democrats have positioned Israel’s ongoing genocidal assault on Gaza—which has killed at least 32,000 Palestinians and engineered a looming famine for over a million—as “Netanyahu’s war.” ... 

But despite Democrats’ repeated suggestion that Netanyahu is the impetus for Israel’s war, political analysts say that in reality the prime minister’s actions are in step with Israel’s political mainstream.  “Schumer is operating in this fantasy that if you get rid of Netanyahu, you might be able to get somebody else who’s more moderate who could then save the relationship between the US and Israel under the pretense of support for progressive values and democracy,” said Omar Baddar, a Palestinian American political analyst.  But this narrative ignores how Israeli politicians almost across the board agree with Israel’s conduct in Gaza, as do the majority of Israelis.  Yair Lapid, the former prime minister and head of the Israeli opposition, supports the ongoing assault, as does war cabinet member Benny Gantz, Netanyahu’s main political rival and the man who, according to polling, would become prime minister if Israel held elections today...

Instead of constituting a substantive shift in US support for Israel, experts say, Democrats’ emboldened critique of Netanyahu should be understood as an attempt to respond to growing voter frustration without changing policy, as the Biden administration remains unwilling to use US aid and arms exports to Israel as leverage to demand a change in behavior.  In this context, the choice to focus on Netanyahu “is a political decision to avoid outright criticism of Israel’s war conduct,” said Lara Friedman, president of the Foundation for Middle East Peace.  For Schumer, in particular, blaming Netanyahu as an individual was a way “to avoid the implication that he is lessening his support for the Israeli state or the Israeli people,” she said. “Instead, Schumer is focusing on a man who is unpopular among Democrats to say, ‘See, we are standing up for our values, so voters should stop being mad at us.’”

~ Alex Kane, "Chuck Schumer and Democrats’ New Line on 'Netanyahu’s War' The majority leader’s recent speech exemplifies his party’s effort to isolate Netanyahu and pacify voters without changing policy," Jewish Currents, March 26, 2024

Schumer speaks at November 14th
"March for Israel" in Washington, DC