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Senator Bernie Sanders, who has had a fair share of controversy, again lends his undivided attention to a cause. In an impassioned video statement, the Vermont independent Senator referred to what is unfolding in Gaza as “one of the worst man-made humanitarian disasters of modern times.”
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The heightened tensions over the Israeli military campaign, which according to Sanders, has gone far beyond the levels of self-defense against Hamas, establish the backdrop for the speech. More ominous statistics were rattled off by Sanders-the death of 60,000 people, 140,000 wounded, 14,000 children killed-to simultaneously expose the complete destruction of Gaza’s infrastructure. “More than 90% of housing is uninhabitable,” he said, adding that the Israeli blockade is creating mass starvation. “Dozens of children have starved to death,” Sanders said.
“This,” Sanders said, “is all being paid for by American taxpayers.” “I don’t care if you’re Democrat, Republican, conservative or progressive. The American people do not want our tax dollars being used to starve children in Gaza.”
And what was the response online? A wave of support with dissenters scattered in transit. A user called in support: “You are the real President of the United States,” while another said, “Finally, someone making sense.” Several commenters tagged their state senators demanding they support Sanders‘ resolutions.
The backers were, however, far from unanimous in their support. A handful of critics maintained that Israel had every right to defend itself. An unusually heated rebuke was offered calling for the Israeli government to be “publicly hanged”—with the comment standing out for its extreme tone amidst otherwise policy-discussion-driven conversations.
Interestingly, some supporters pushed the argument even further to suggest that China should rebuild Gaza given its efficiency in infrastructure development. Others ran down lobbying groups such as AIPAC, aiming to curtail their influence.
Pushing to great controversies is what Sanders says he thrives on, and he seems to be wagering very big on public outrage over Gaza to confront his fellow senators. Will it effectuate real change, or will it stir up yet another shouting match on Capitol Hill? The jury’s still out on that. For one thing, though-the 82-year-old is not done making a ruckus.
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Next comes the Senate showdown, with the spotlight blazing along the tracks of those who’ve jumped on Sanders‘ side and those who have remained silent.