Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu finally found a US president who is willing to fight a war with Iran. The morning of the joint attack by the US and Israel on Iran, Netanyahu said, “This coalition of forces allows us to do what I have yearned to do for 40 years: defeat the terror regime…. This is what I promised – and this is what we shall do.”  

Netanyahu called Trump “one of Israel’s greatest friends in the White House of all time.”

However, the impunity that has allowed Netanyahu to carry out what Israeli human rights organization, B’tselem, calls a genocide in Gaza has been enabled by BOTH Democrats and Republicans in the US, and goes back many years. Our history of enabling Netanyahu and his right-wing government has resulted in the current war with Iran—which has led to military strikes in Iran, Israel, Lebanon, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Jordan, Oman, Cyprus, Iraq, and Syria. 

There is now widespread chaos in the Middle East, including the bombing of seven US embassies, the closure of most airports, and the announcement by the US that all Americans in the region are in danger and must leave immediately. Seven US soldiers have been killed, as have more than 1,300 Iranian civilians; 168 young students at a girl’s school in Iran were killed by a U.S. bomb on day one of the attacks.

Democrats in Congress, including California Senators Adam Schiff and Alex Padilla and our US Representative Jimmy Panetta, have spoken out against the reckless war on Iran, claiming that is has no clear justification and no Congressional authorization. Yet, despite the fact that the war is being waged by Israel as well as the U.S., not one of our Congressional representatives criticizes Benjamin Netanyahu and the right-wing Israeli government in their statements against the war. Nonetheless, it remains obvious that Israel is at the center of the push for the strikes on Iran, with the goal of decapitating its leadership and destabilizing its power in the region.  As he stated publicly, Netanyahu has wanted to do this for forty years.

There will be no peace in the Middle East as long as the US president and Congress continue to support and finance the destructive policies of Netanyahu and his followers. One month ago, on Feb 6, 2026, the US Congress passed its annual appropriations bills, which included over $4 billion for military assistance to Israel. Incredibly, this was the largest US annual appropriations package for the Israeli military in history—despite the international outcry over Israel’s genocide in Gaza and ethnic cleansing in the West Bank.

Here in California, we can do our part by electing members of Congress who refuse to enable Netanyahu and the rest of the current leadership of the Israeli government. 

Our Congressional Representative Jimmy Panetta has enabled Netanyahu from his very first press release in Congress in January 2017, when he opposed the Obama Administration’s support for a UN resolution calling for a halt to new settlements on the West Bank. Panetta has consistently voted for unconditional military aid to Israel, most recently for the largest-ever military package to Israel on January 14, 2026. 

It is no surprise that Panetta is the largest recipient of campaign contributions from AIPAC, the pro-Israel lobby, in Northern California, according to a KQED report.

At a Town Hall in Watsonville on October 19, 2025, Representative Panetta tried to obfuscate his voting record on weapons to Israel. He said, “Since October 7th of 2023, there’s only been seven votes dealing with funding for Israel’s defense. I voted no on five out of those seven times of that funding.” A fact check of Panetta’s votes indicates that his “no” votes were part of Democrats’ maneuvers to thwart Republican initiatives. For example, his no vote in November 2023 was part of an attempt by Democrats to include military aid to Ukraine in the bill, over Republican opposition. When the bill ultimately included military aid to both Ukraine and Israel, Panetta voted yes. 

Panetta’s falsification of his record demonstrates the influence of public opinion against Israel’s actions in Gaza. Now we need to turn public opinion into political action.

The Santa Cruz County Democratic Central Committee (DCC) has begun to do so. In January 2026, the DCC endorsed theBlock the Bombs Act, which would prevent the United States from transferring certain offensive weapons to Israel unless Israel conforms to International Human Rights Law. The DCC also endorsed legislation to restore US funding for the UN relief agency for Palestinians (UNRWA), which provides essential humanitarian assistance in Gaza.

As we move towards the June 2nd primary election for congress, let our votes express our common humanity. We invite you to attend our Candidates Forum on “War vs. Peace: U.S. Foreign Policy” on Saturday April 25, 2026, 2:00-4:00 pm to learn more about the other candidates running to represent us in the House of Representatives. 

The forum is sponsored by Central Coast Advocates for Peace in the Middle East, and is open to the public. It will be held at the Santa Cruz Friends Quaker meeting house, 225 Rooney Street, Santa Cruz, CA 95065.

We can use the power of our voices and our votes. We can vote peace.