WASHINGTON (JTA) — The Democrats running for president have hewed to the party line in criticizing the Israeli-Palestinian peace plan rolled out by President Donald Trump: Unilateral annexation of settlements is the wrong way to go.
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The tone was first set by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, who each seized on the failure of the Trump administration to include the Palestinians in the peace process and the apparent green light that Israel gets in the plan to extend its law to West Bank settlements.
“The proposal that was presented today raises many questions,” Pelosi, a California Democrat, said Tuesday, “specifically regarding unilateral annexation, settlement freezes and lack of negotiations with the Palestinians.”
Schumer, a New York Democrat who is known for his closeness to the prominent Israel lobby AIPAC, said both sides should come to the negotiating table.
“Unilateral action taken by either side in response to the release of the Trump administration’s plan will diminish the prospects of a future peace,” he said.
That was the consistent response from candidates who chose to address the deal, and one of them, Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, pledged to reverse the effects of the plan. Here are their statements.
Warren: “Releasing a plan without negotiating with Palestinians isn’t diplomacy, it’s a sham. I will oppose unilateral annexation in any form — and reverse any policy that supports it.”
Joe Biden: “A peace plan requires two sides to come together. This is a political stunt that could spark unilateral moves to annex territory and set back peace even more,” the former vice president said. “I’ve spent a lifetime working to advance the security and survival of a Jewish and democratic Israel. This is not the way.”
Mike Bloomberg: “Every peace plan deserves a chance, but any viable plan requires buy-in from both sides, and over the past three years the president has done nothing but hurt the U.S.’s position as an effective broker in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict,” the one-time mayor New York said. “As this process unfolds it is critical that neither party take unilateral steps that could trigger instability and violence.”
Pete Buttigieg: “Peace requires both parties at the table. Not a political green light to the leader of one for unilateral annexation,” the former mayor of South Bend, Indiana, said.
Bernie Sanders: The Vermont senator objected to the plan, but not as a candidate — the message came from his Senate office.
“Any acceptable peace deal must be consistent with international law and multiple UN Security Council resolutions. It must end the Israeli occupation that began in 1967 and enable Palestinian self-determination in an independent, democratic, economically viable state of their own alongside a secure and democratic state of Israel,” he said. “Trump’s so-called ‘peace deal’ doesn’t come close, and will only perpetuate the conflict, and undermine the security interests of Americans, Israelis, and Palestinians. It is unacceptable.”
Sanders, Warren and Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota, another presidential candidate, joined a letter to Trump sent by 12 Democrats in the Senate expressing their “profound concern” over the plan.
“We write to express our profound concern regarding your decision to release a one-sided Israeli-Palestinian plan forged without any Palestinian involvement or support,” the senators said. “Unilateral implementation of this one-sided proposal will risk eliminating any remaining prospects for achievement of a peaceful and viable two-state solution.”
Tehran Nancy and the rest of the democrats taking the side of the terrorists again just like they did when mass murderer soleimani was splattered across the tarmac.
Trump’s plan is the4 only logical possibility. It either would be Hisbollistan or controlled by the other terrorists a Hamasistan. Even the democrats except for your and my co-national Bernie Sanders nobody thinks differently and the Palestinian doctors and pharmacist in Israel want the status quo
Each of these candidates has rendered him/herself unqualified for public office with these completely idiotic statements. Let’s examine.
Schumer and Pelosi: Trump spoke about his interest in crafting a peace plan, as did every other candidate for presidency for decades. The Palis spoke up immediately. rejecting any such plan, before even hearing a tiny bit of it. They echoed that sentiment for the past 3 years. They had no input because they rejected what they did not even see, or wish to make contribution to it. Blaming this on Trump is an outright lie.
Warren: It is not a sham. The Palis were invited to participate in the process countless times. You know that, or you have been asleep for years. Wake up and smell the cocktails (Molotov). All that the Palis contributed was increasing their vicious attacks on innocent civilians.
Biden: Please share with us what you did to promote the security of Israel. Assisting Obama in withholding shipment of arms that were already paid for while Israel was at war? Facilitating the transfer of billions of dollars to Iran to fund its network of terror against Israel? Permitting Iran to develop nuclear weapons in the stupid Iran deal?
Bloomberg: Buy in from both sides. One side rejected the offer to participate in any meetings or negotiations. They refused to buy in. Must we all wait for them to change their minds? They had more than 50 years to do this, and never tried.
Butt: There was room at the table, and their chairs were clean, dusted, and waiting for their butts. There is still room for them to approach this idea, tweak it to suit them better. But they will only riot in the streets, destroy their own cities, and blame it all on Israel and trump. They are pathetic, and your chutzpah includes you with them.
Sandbag: You speak pure stupidity. The lack of security for Israel is the very existence of the Palestinians having any degree of authority or control over anything. They have proven for more than 50 years that they will exploit these privileges to inflict terror, violence, and death on Israelis and other Jews, while doing nothing to improve their conditions. And they take our “humanitarian” aid and divert it to building weapons to carry out their evil passions, and enrich the politicians, without sharing a dime with the poverty stricken population. So tell us, what secure Israel were you considering?
trump can rebuild the mikdash and the dems will still complain about him