Mediaboss Marketing

Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-Ill.) said Tuesday he does not think Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) should be ousted from his position for “doing the right thing” by letting Ukraine aid to the floor for a vote.

Krishnamoorthi also predicted, in an interview with CNN’s Jim Acosta, that enough Democrats would vote to save the Speaker if Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) followed through on her threat to force a vote on a motion to vacate.

“Look, if Speaker Johnson brings Ukraine aid to the floor and other aid packages to the floor and does the right thing — and then Marjorie Taylor Greene seeks to remove him or moves to remove him — I think that Democrats would join in a motion to kill such a maneuver,” Krishnamoorthi said.

“Because he should not be punished for doing the right thing,” he added.

Krishnamoorthi’s remarks come on the heels of other Democrats similarly signaling an openness to vote to save Johnson if Greene tries to oust him.

Greene filed a motion to vacate in late March, shortly before lawmakers returned home to their districts for a two-week holiday recess.

The measure did not force an immediate vote on Johnson’s hypothetical removal, but Greene, throughout the recess period, has continued to threaten to force an ouster vote. She has warned Johnson explicitly against bringing Ukraine aid to the floor for a vote.

Krishnamoorthi said Tuesday he was not sure Greene would ultimately decide to force an ouster vote, noting some Republicans have indicated they did not have an appetite for another Speakership battle.

“It could,” he said, when asked about the likelihood of Greene forcing a vote on the motion to vacate. “Although very interestingly — among my Republican colleagues, especially moderates and others — they feel that there isn’t a lot of support for her motion, and therefore she may not make it.”

“But all that being said, we should be prepared for anything. And we’ve seen this movie before. And so, you know, we’ll be, I think, not surprised if it happens, but I’m hoping that if he does the right thing, he won’t be punished for doing that,” Krishnamoorthi said.

See the original post here:
Illinois Democrat: Speaker Johnson should not be punished for doing the right thing on Ukraine - The Hill

(JTA) Rep. Gregory Meeks, the leading Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, has said he would not approve a U.S. sale of F-15 fighter jets to Israel without assurances on what the jets would be used for.

Im waiting for assurances, Meeks, who represents a district in New York City, told CNN on Tuesday. It is enough of the indiscriminate bombing. I dont want the kinds of weapons that Israel has to be utilized to have more death.

Meeks is one of four lawmakers on Capitol Hill with the power to hold up weapons sales. He has previously supported Israels battle against Hamas and called in the CNN interview for Hamas to immediately release hostages.

His statement is the latest signal that support for Israels war effort is eroding among Democratic lawmakers, particularly following an Israeli strike that killed seven aid workers earlier this month and even as the Biden administration has signaled its support as Israel anticipates Iranian retaliation for its killing of a senior Iranian commander this month.

Days before Meeks interview, more than 50 Democratic members of Congress including leading progressives and former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi signed a letter calling on President Joe Biden to halt weapons transfers to Israel. Meeks was not one of the signatories.

If this strike is found to have violated U.S. or international law, we urge you to continue withholding these transfers until those responsible are held accountable, the letter says. We also urge you to withhold these transfers if Israel fails to sufficiently mitigate harm to innocent civilians in Gaza, including aid workers, and if it fails to facilitate or arbitrarily denies or restricts the transport and delivery of humanitarian aid into Gaza.

In another sign of tensions, last week Sen. Elizabeth Warren, commenting on Israels trial on the charge of genocide at the International Court of Justice, said, I believe they will find it is genocide, and they have ample evidence to do so. Israel vehemently rejects that accusation and says it takes measures to protect civilian life.

Following the strike on the aid convoy, the Biden administration expressed its outrage and called on Israel to do more to facilitate the delivery of humanitarian aid into Gaza. Israel has since increased the flow of aid, stemming Bidens criticism. In recent days, his administration has rebuffed criticism of Israel and conveyed its support ahead of a possible Iranian attack. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said on Tuesday that the United States has not seen any evidence that Israel is committing genocide.

As I told Prime Minister Netanyahu, our commitment to Israels security against these threats from Iran and its proxies is ironclad, Biden said at a press conference on Wednesday. Let me say it again, ironclad. Were going to do all we can to protect Israels security.

Original post:
Leading Democratic congressman says he wants 'assurances' before approving sale of fighter jets to Israel - JTA News - Jewish Telegraphic Agency

1. Democrat Adam Schiff and Republican Steve Garvey set to compete for California Senate seat  The Associated Press
2. California Senate primary winners: Adam Schiff, Steve Garvey advance to November ballot  NBC News
3. Election results: Democrats should be terrified about California in November.  Slate

Excerpt from:
Democrat Adam Schiff and Republican Steve Garvey set to compete for California Senate seat - The Associated Press

Mainstream Democrats, watching the politics around Israels war in Gaza shift against them, are pressing President Biden to become far more outspoken in his criticism of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahus right-wing government and far more upfront in his demands for a long-term solution to the conflict that includes a Palestinian state.

At the outset of the war, with memories fresh from Hamass terrorist attack on Israel that took around 1,200 lives, Jewish Democrats who had grown restive more than a year ago over Mr. Netanyahus governance largely rallied around Mr. Biden as he sided firmly with Israel.

But as the death toll in Gaza rises inexorably, many are pleading with the president not so much to change policies but to become the voice of his administrations own demands for a Ramadan cease-fire, more humanitarian aid, more restraint of Jewish settler violence and a long-term peace that includes a Palestinian state.

We are hoping that a strategy for peace and an end to this nightmare will be laid out at the State of the Union, Representative Jamie Raskin of Maryland, a prominent Jewish Democrat, said on Wednesday. Nobody can question Bidens commitment to the security of Israel, and nobody can question his commitment over the course of his career to human rights and international law. Now is the time when the world needs to see American leadership for peace.

Mr. Raskin, returning to earlier criticism of Mr. Netanyahus governing coalition, the most right-wing in Israels history, added, Democrats feel we dont take orders from right-wing politicians in America, and we shouldnt be taking orders from right-wing politicians in another country.

More than a dozen Jewish Democrats in the House spearheaded a critical letter late last month demanding Mr. Biden redouble his efforts to achieve a cease-fire that facilitates more humanitarian aid to starving Gazans. Many of the same lawmakers on Wednesday warned against an Israeli strike on the city of Rafah, along the Gaza-Egypt border, where hundreds of thousands of displaced civilians have sheltered.

We are having trouble retrieving the article content.

Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.

Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit andlog intoyour Times account, orsubscribefor all of The Times.

Thank you for your patience while we verify access.

Already a subscriber?Log in.

Want all of The Times?Subscribe.

Read more:
Nervous Democrats Press Biden on Gaza Ahead of State of the Union - The New York Times

Josh Stein, the North Carolina attorney general, handily won the states Democratic primary for governor on Tuesday, according to The Associated Press, setting the stage for a matchup with a fiery Republican rival in a race that will be tightly contested and closely watched.

The race will probably be the most expensive in the country this year outside of the presidential election, as Democrats try to retain a governors office that they have held for all but four of the last 31 years, a rare Southern stronghold for the party.

Mr. Stein, 57, who was endorsed by Gov. Roy Cooper, a term-limited Democrat, easily defeated his four primary opponents, including Michael Morgan, a former North Carolina Supreme Court justice.

Now Mr. Stein, who has presented himself as a stable and experienced leader, will turn his attention to his opponent, Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson. The attorney general has cast Mr. Robinson as an extreme figure distracted by culture war issues.

Mr. Stein has highlighted a number of statements that Mr. Robinson has come under heavy criticism for making in recent years, including that Christians are called to be led by men, not women, and that theres no reason anybody anywhere in America should be telling any child about transgenderism, homosexuality, any of that filth.

Some politicians spark division, ignite hate and fan the flames of bigotry, Mr. Stein said in a campaign ad that showed clips of Mr. Robinson.

Mr. Robinson has dismissed the criticism while doubling down on anti-L.G.B.T.Q. remarks and painting Mr. Stein as an extreme liberal.

Political science professors in North Carolina say that Mr. Stein will have an easy time portraying Mr. Robinson as a Trump-aligned Republican who would further roll back abortion rights. A big question is which candidate will benefit more from the huge influx of voters the state has seen over the last few years; many have settled in the suburbs and exurbs of Charlotte and Raleigh. President Biden won the counties that contain those cities in 2020 but lost many of the surrounding areas to Donald J. Trump.

A native of Chapel Hill who has degrees from Dartmouth and Harvard, Mr. Stein became the first Jewish person elected to statewide office in North Carolina in 2016 when he defeated Buck Newton, a Republican, to become attorney general. He previously served as a state senator.

His re-election victory in 2020, however, showed how slim his margins could be: He won by fewer than 14,000 votes that year, with 50.1 percent of the vote. Mr. Trump won the state in 2020 by 1.3 percentage points, and Mr. Cooper by more than 4 percentage points.

Visit link:
Josh Stein Wins Democratic Primary for North Carolina Governor - The New York Times