Alberto Miranda argues the Democratic Party must abandon its reflexive backing of Israel and leverage U.S. aid to force a two-state solution. He notes that 40 Democrats recently voted to block certain weapons shipments to Prime Minister Netanyahu’s government, up from 15 a year earlier. The essay warns that unconditional support has cost American taxpayers and credibility for future votes.

Miranda cites the expansion of illegal settlements, violent settler attacks and Israel’s de‑facto annexation as evidence the occupation undermines both U.S. strategic interests and the party’s professed values. He blames both Trump’s embassy move to Jerusalem and Biden’s failure to reverse settlement‑friendly policies for entrenching a status quo that drains tens of billions from the federal budget in the region.

He calls on the next Democratic president to condition arms sales on a time‑bound plan to end the occupation, recognize a Palestinian state and re‑impose sanctions on actors destabilizing the West Bank. Such steps would pit Washington against AIPAC’s lobbying clout but could restore credibility and halt the drain on U.S. resources and signal a new U.S. foreign policy direction.