Members of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations on Tuesday spoke to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) following his controversial speech in which he called for Israel to hold elections to replace its government.
In statement following the meeting, the Conference of Presidents said it still had reservations about Schumer’s speech.
“We deeply appreciate Senate Majority Leader Schumer speaking to the membership of the Conference of Presidents this afternoon, as well as his longstanding support of Israel and the Jewish people. His decades of leadership are historic and without precedent,” said Harriet P. Schleifer, Chair, and William Daroff, CEO, of the Conference of Presidents.
“Even so, the pro-Israel community and our membership continue to have deep reservations about Senator Schumer’s speech on the Senate floor last week regarding impediments to peace between Israel and the Palestinians. We believe that at a time when Israel is fighting an existential war, on the embers of the 1200 innocents massacred on October 7th, it is not a time for public criticisms that serve only to empower the detractors of Israel, and which foster greater divisiveness, when unity is so desperately needed,” they added.
“Our member organizations, representing the broad swath of American Jewry, remain distressed that an American official would tell a sovereign, democratic ally when to conduct its electoral process and assert that the U.S. should possibly ‘play a more active role in shaping Israeli policy by using our leverage to change present course.’ In actuality, what is really needed is U.S. leverage to bolster and support the Jewish state in this time of need,” said the Jewish leaders.
They added that it was “most unfortunate that Senator Schumer’s stated barriers to peace included the Hamas Terror Army and the democratically elected Prime Minister of Israel in the same breath. Hamas’ unwillingness to release the hostages, lay down its arms, and surrender are the actual barriers to peace.”
“The U.S.-Israel relationship has weathered many disagreements through close and confidential discussion of its leadership, which continues to be the appropriate forum for such conversations,” the statement concluded.
Schumer caused a firestorm last week when he said that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu "has lost his way" and called him an "obstacle to peace."
“The Netanyahu coalition no longer fits the needs of Israel," he said. "The Israeli people are being stifled right now by a governing vision that is stuck in the past.”
Schumer later sought to clarify his remarks, writing, “The US cannot dictate the outcome of an election. That is for the Israeli public to decide.”
“As a democracy, Israel has the right to choose its own leaders. But the important thing is that Israelis are given a choice. There needs to be a fresh debate about the future,” he added.
While officials in Israel and Republican lawmakers criticized Schumer, President Joe Biden indicated he supported Schumer’s remarks.
"He made a good speech," Biden said in the Oval Office when asked by reporters asked about Schumer's remarks.
"He expressed serious concerns, shared not only by him but by many Americans," Biden continued, adding that his staff were notified about the speech in advance by Schumer.
Schumer said on Tuesday that he considered calling for Netanyahu to step down, but decided against doing that because it would cross a red line.
“I wrestled with myself — maybe I should say Bibi should step down,” Schumer told The New York Times, but then added, “That is telling Israel what to do, and it’s in the middle of a war.” He later said that when the idea of calling for a resignation came up, “I always said no.”