Why Hasan Piker thinks Democrats are moving in his direction |
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Why Hasan Piker thinks Democrats are moving in his direction
Hasan Piker vs. Third Way is a battle for the Democratic Party.
Here’s what’s undeniable: The Democratic electorate has dramatically shifted when it comes to the United States’ relationship with Israel.
Earlier this year, a national poll from Gallup found that 41 percent of Americans sympathize with Palestinians and 36 percent with Israelis — the first time since Gallup began tracking the metric in 2001 that Israelis do not hold a clear lead in US sympathies. Among Democrats, the gap is a chasm: 65 percent side with Palestinians, just 17 percent with Israelis.
A Pew survey from March, meanwhile, found that 6 in 10 Americans now have a very or somewhat unfavorable view of Israel, up 7 percentage points since last year and nearly 20 points since 2022 — and among Democrats and Democratic-leaners, that figure climbs to 80 percent.
This shift, in the wake of the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, and Israel’s brutal war in Gaza in response, has increasingly challenged elected officials from both parties. Democrats, in particular, seem to be more openly questioning the party’s position when it comes to things like arming Israel with offensive weapons.
But, beyond policy, the Democrats’ new conundrum on Israel also comes down to a question of tone. What is legitimate criticism of the Israeli government? What drifts into antisemitism? And who are the voices that should determine what’s acceptable within that debate?
Third Way, the Democratic organization that promotes moderate candidates and centrist policy proposals, recently weighed in with its thoughts on the subject. In March, the organization’s president, Jonathan Cowan, co-wrote a Wall Street Journal op-ed titled “Democrats Are Too Cozy With........