Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-N.Y.) has vigorously supported Israel’s boarding an aid ship bound for the blockaded Gaza. Pro-Israel Dems defend raid

While the Obama administration takes a wait-and-see approach to the newest crisis in the Middle East, some Democrats in Congress stand firmly behind Israel’s raid of a Turkish flotilla en route to Gaza.

New York Democratic Reps. Anthony Weiner, Jerrold Nadler, Gary Ackerman, Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand and Rep. Ron Klein (D-Fla.) have all vigorously supported Israel’s boarding an aid ship bound for the blockaded Gaza — an act that resulted in ten deaths and a U.N. condemnation.


The comments expose a bit of daylight between the White House and some staunch defenders of Israel in Congress. Robert Gibbs, the White House press secretary, said the administration is “greatly supportive of [Israel’s] security. That’s not going to change.” And in a statement, the White House said it had “regret” for the deaths but supported an investigation to uncover the facts.

Pro-Israel Democrats aren’t being so nuanced.

“I think that members of the United States Congress understand why the blockade was in place against Hamas and support it, once you start at that place, a boat that bows into the teeth of that blockade isn’t going to be viewed sympathetically,” Weiner said. “To the extent that any time that there is a flare-up of tensions, it’s bad for U.S. and Israeli efforts of peace. We obviously had a bad weekend.”

Ackerman, who chairs the House Foreign Affairs subcommittee on the Middle East, said he “strongly support(s) Israel’s right to defend itself, and the right of Israel’s naval commandos, who were executing a legal mission, to defend themselves by using force when they were brutally attacked.”

He called Hamas the “true villain in this drama.”

“Failure to recognize the moral responsibility of Hamas for these events is possible only by confusing cause with effect, or by holding Israel to an unacceptable double standard,” Ackerman said.

Klein, whose district includes the heavily Jewish Boca Raton, said “Israel has the right — indeed, the obligation — to defend itself.”

“As Israel continues to be unjustly challenged on the international stage, the United States must continue its efforts to stand up for Israel’s self-defense,” Klein said.

The international community, Nadler said, is trying to “embarrass Israel” and the “U.S. must stand up for the right of Israel to defend herself against terrorism — which is what Israel did when she blocked the attempt by the Flotilla to forcefully breach the blockade that is preventing weapons and military materials from reaching Hamas.”

The U.N. is also quickly emerging as a punching bag for some of Israel’s strongest allies in Washington. House Minority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.), Gillibrand and Weiner have all chided the organization’s work since the weekend raid.

The U.N. has been swift in responding to the incident, condemning “acts that resulted in” deaths aboard boats said to be bringing aid to the Gaza Strip. The body, however, pointedly did not directly condemn Israel.

“The United Nations is a giant anti-Israel echo chamber on the east side of Manhattan, and its members sit and wait for opportunities to criticize Israel,” Weiner told POLITICO in a phone interview Tuesday.

Cantor, the only Jewish Republican in Congress, urged “the president and his administration to continue to gather all the facts, and if necessary, to veto any biased U.N. resolutions reigning in Israel’s right to defend itself.”

“Before predictably rushing to level hyperbolic accusations at Israel, it’s important for the United Nations to consider all the facts surrounding this incident,” Cantor said in a statement.

While some of her membership rushes to defend Israel, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) is staying cautious with her words.

“I regret the loss of life and look forward to learning the facts from a credible and transparent investigation,” she said in a statement. “This event underscores the urgent need for negotiations designed to achieve an enduring and comprehensive regional peace.”