> The Democrats Unify Against Israel

Israel is the Democratic Party’s new litmus test, and Mr. Sanders is leading the turn against the Jewish state. In 2024, 19 Democrats voted with him to deny military aid to a U.S. ally at war. In 2025, 24 did the same. This year, as the U.S. and Israel fought side by side against the Iranian theocracy, 40 of 47 Democratic senators were with Mr. Sanders.

Israel typically enjoys bipartisan support in America, and there are critics of Israeli policy in both parties. But what’s happening on the left is unmistakable: Backing America’s closest Middle Eastern ally now jeopardizes one’s future in the Democratic Party. The trend has disturbing implications not only for U.S.-Israel relations but for the future of American power and ideals.

In a Pew Research Center survey conducted in March, 60% of U.S. adults held an unfavorable view of Israel. But the top line masked a staggering partisan divide: Most Republicans continue to view Israel favorably, while 80% of Democrats don’t. Recently Echelon Insights found that self-described “very liberal” voters have more favorable views of China than of Israel.

Democratic elites follow the polls. Anti-Israel sentiment runs through every level of the party, from former presidents to insurgent candidates. The woolly fringe is now mainstream. Barack Obama was all smiles in a recent photo-op with New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani, a socialist for whom anti-Zionism is a calling card. The Democrats’ newest congresswoman, Analilia Mejia of New Jersey, is a former Sanders delegate who omitted Israeli terror victims from an Oct. 10, 2023, social-media post condemning violence in Gaza.

The changing party dynamics are most visible in Michigan. At a Democratic convention last weekend, Kamala Harris, who during the 2024 campaign refused to meet with Israel’s prime minister in public, blamed the Jewish state for America’s war with Iran. President Trump “got pulled into it by Bibi Netanyahu, let’s be clear about that,” Ms. Harris said to applause.

After criticizing Operation Epic Fury for endangering American lives and raising gasoline prices to levels not seen since she was vice president, Ms. Harris indulged in conspiracy theory. She said Mr. Trump’s running conflict with Iran over its nuclear program “has always been his feeble attempt to distract from the Epstein files.”