Former U.S. transportation secretary Pete Buttigieg reversed his position on Israel on Thursday, saying that he now supports an arms embargo on the Jewish state.
The potential 2028 Democratic contender clarified his views to Politico after he gave vague answers about his positions on Israel during a podcast interview the previous week.
“For anybody, looking at images of children starving and suffering and dying is horrifying, but I do think it’s different when you’re a parent,” Buttigieg said. “I think as a parent, you see these awful images of starving children with their ribs showing and automatically, you imagine your own kids.”
Buttigieg told the outlet that he would have voted for resolutions put forward by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) to forbid arms sales to Israel, that he would not renew the 10-year memorandum of understanding on U.S. aid and that he supports the recognition of a Palestinian state as part of a two-state solution.
A week earlier on Pod Save America, a podcast produced by former Obama administration staffers, he called the United States “Israel’s strongest ally” and described the country as a “friend” but avoided taking a firm position on halting arms shipments or how he would deal with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Those responses drew criticism from some anti-Israel Democrats.
“Pete is a smart guy and I admire a lot of what he’s done, but I have absolutely no idea what he thinks based on these answers,” wrote Ben Rhodes, a former Obama administration adviser. “Just tell us what you believe.”
“I respect Pete, but we need moral clarity, not status quo,” wrote Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.), one of the leading critics of Israel in the House. “Trump and Biden disastrously failed on Gaza, and we need a new human rights centered vision.”
