The Democratic National Committee (DNC) is facing criticism after its resolutions committee rejected a measure to call for an arms embargo on Israel on Tuesday, despite a famine being officially declared in Gaza just days before.
There were two measures before the panel on Gaza on Tuesday morning: One, introduced by Florida DNC member Allison Minnerly, urges the party’s members to back a ceasefire and a military and arms embargo on Israel.
Another resolution, introduced as a counter-measure by DNC chair Ken Martin, largely reiterates the party’s existing platform, calling for a two-state solution, ceasefire, and unconditional release of all Israeli captives.
Martin’s resolution passed unanimously through the committee. But the arms embargo resolution failed, with only a handful of “yes” votes and a chorus of “nays.” An amendment to the latter measure, introduced by Stephanie Beal of Colorado, to add language calling for “the return of all hostages” in Gaza and to only call for an embargo on “offensive” weaponry, also failed to pass.
The vote comes just days after the world’s leading hunger authority officially declared a famine for hundreds of thousands of Palestinians in Gaza and warned that it would rapidly spread across the Strip if states did not act to stop it immediately.
Speaking in favor of her resolution, Minnerly said that the party must pass it to align with the overwhelming majority of Democratic voters who back an arms embargo.
Only “7 percent of Democrats support the Party’s current position in this conflict and this crisis,” Minnerly said. The resolution, drafted alongside Palestinians and concerned parties, she said, would “ensure that the Democratic Party will follow the will of our voters and call for an end to U.S. involvement in this particular tragedy.”
In response to the votes, Martin withdrew his resolution and announced that the party would create a task force “comprised of stakeholders on all sides of this to continue to have the conversation” about the issue. The split resolutions were a result of weeks of failed negotiations within the party to back a unified measure.
Minnerly said that, conversely, Martin’s actions reflect an attempt to stray away from discussing the genocide.
“I do think that his decision to pull his resolution now might reflect, maybe, some inner thoughts and fears that even the establishment Democratic Party, here at the DNC, is not aligned with the base and trying to avoid that conversation because it’s already created a problem with the party,” she said, per Politico. She added that Martin did not give her a timeline on the creation of the task force when they spoke after the vote.
The president for lobbying group Democratic Majority for Israel (DMFI), Brian Romick, had denounced the resolution ahead of the vote, saying that it “does not even mention” the October 7, 2023, attack, or the “terrorist group Hamas.” He also bizarrely said that an arms embargo would “only prolong the war.”
Minnerly had rejected that framing, saying that messaging about Hamas is a distraction from the U.S.’s role in the Gaza assault. “There is a more direct line between the U.S. government and Israel than there is between the U.S. government and Hamas. Any conversation that doesn’t acknowledge that just simply isn’t rooted in the reality of where we are right now,” she said in a recent interview with The Nation.
The party has been roundly condemned for its failure to pass the resolution.
“It’s another sign of just how out of touch Democratic Party leadership is today that dark money groups like DMFI — that have spent millions in Democratic primaries to unseat progressives who stand for human rights for all people — were consulted ahead of DNC Chair Ken Martin’s decision to introduce his bland resolution, while advocates for Palestinian rights who represent most Democrats were once again shut out and ignored,” said Margaret DeReus, executive director of the Institute for Middle East Understanding Policy Project.
“Sadly, this has been standard practice for a historically unpopular Democratic leadership that will not win elections until it decides to become a political party that actually listens to its voters,” DeReus went on.
Press freedom is under attack
As Trump cracks down on political speech, independent media is increasingly necessary.
Truthout produces reporting you won’t see in the mainstream: journalism from the frontlines of global conflict, interviews with grassroots movement leaders, high-quality legal analysis and more.
Our work is possible thanks to reader support. Help Truthout catalyze change and social justice — make a tax-deductible monthly or one-time donation today.