Here Are the Dems Pushing for Trump to Back Palestinian Statehood

(Photo by Kim Jae-Hwan / SOPA Images/Sipa USA)(Sipa via AP Images)

A growing bloc of House Democrats led by Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA) is demanding that President Donald Trump recognize a Palestinian state, seizing on mounting global momentum and deepening pushback over Israel’s Gaza campaign to press a policy shift in Washington.

“The tragic moment has highlighted for the world the long overdue need to recognize Palestinian self-determination,” the lawmakers wrote in a letter first reported by Jewish Insider, referencing France’s recent pledge alongside the United Kingdom and Canada to formally recognize Palestine at the UN General Assembly in September.

The letter comes as famine warnings and Israel’s conduct in Gaza test traditionally held policy positions in Congress. At least a dozen Democrats have so far signed a letter urging the Trump administration and Secretary of State Marco Rubio to endorse Palestinian statehood.

According to Axios, signatories to the Khanna letter include the following representatives:

Chellie Pingree (D-ME)
Nydia Velazquez (D-NY)
Jim McGovern (D-MA)
André Carson (D-IN)
Greg Casar (D-TX)
Lloyd Doggett (D-TX)
Veronica Escobar (D-TX)
Maxwell Frost (D-FL)
Al Green (D-TX)
Jared Huffman (D-CA)
Mark Pocan (D-WI)
Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-NJ)

The list of backers is growing, but Khanna called the early support “overwhelming,” citing the Arab League’s new plan for a two-state solution: “We cannot be isolated from the rest of the free world.”

The Biden administration showed little appetite for such moves. But Trump, long tied to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, has lately struck a softer note, telling Axios he’s working on a plan to “get people fed” in Gaza and appearing to distance himself from Israeli denials of famine.