Newsom says US military aid to Israel 'has to be conditioned'

Conditioned aid stance

California Governor Gavin Newsom said Saturday that United States military aid to Israel "has to be conditioned," citing settler violence in the occupied West Bank and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's policies which he said undermine prospects for a two-state solution. Speaking to the Washington Examiner during a campaign visit to New Hampshire, Newsom described the position as increasingly becoming the Democratic Party's consensus as he positions himself for a potential 2028 presidential run.

Newsom sharply criticized the Israeli prime minister, stating that "Bibi Netanyahu has done a remarkable job of really isolating himself from the rest of the world and increasingly from the American people," and adding that "the damage he's done is incalculable." He called Israel's war in Gaza a "moral catastrophe" but declined to specify which forms of military assistance should face conditions, noting the distinctions between defensive systems such as Iron Dome and offensive weapons.

Democratic opposition

The governor said US aid should advance human rights principles, including under the Leahy framework — a 1997 federal rule prohibiting Washington from funding foreign military units linked to "credible information" of severe human rights violations. His remarks come amid growing Democratic opposition to arms transfers to Israel, with most Senate Democrats voting in the spring to block a weapons sale and more than 100 House Democrats opposing a separate measure in July.

Israel is scheduled to hold elections on October 27, which Newsom said could influence the debate. Newsom has previously criticized Netanyahu while expressing support for Israel, including visiting the country in 2023 to meet survivors of the Hamas attack, and in March he called his description of Israel as an "apartheid state" a "regret."