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angus king
'No Aid of Any Kind' to Netanyahu While Gaza Starves: Longtime Israel-Backing Senator
"I cannot defend the indefensible," said Sen. Angus King.
Jul 28, 2025
A longtime supporter of military aid to Israel in the U.S. Senate is drawing a red line amid the ongoing starvation crisis in Gaza.
Sen. Angus King (I-Maine) on Monday released a statement saying he would not vote to support any more aid to Israel unless Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government drastically reversed course to allow more food and other life-saving supplies to enter Gaza.
In a statement flagged on X by Dylan Williams, the vice president for government affairs at the Center for International Policy, King delivered a harsh rebuke to the Israeli government for its role in the humanitarian catastrophe unfolding under its watch.
"I cannot defend the indefensible," King's statement began. "Israel's actions in the conduct of the war in Gaza, especially its failure to address the unimaginable humanitarian crisis now unfolding, is an affront to human decency. What appears to be a deliberately-induced famine among a civilian population—including tens of thousands of starving children—can never be an acceptable military strategy."
King emphasized that he supported Israel's right to retaliate after the October 7, 2023 attacks on the country by Hamas, but then said "that tragic event cannot in turn justify the enormous toll on Palestinian civilians caused by Israel's relentless bombing campaign and its indifference to the current plight of those trapped in what's left of Gaza."
The Maine senator then vowed to back up his words with actions.
"I am through supporting the actions of the current Israeli government and will advocate—and vote—for an end to any United States support whatsoever until there is a demonstrable change in the direction of Israeli policy," he said. "My litmus test will be simple: No aid of any kind as long as there are starving children in Gaza due to the action or inaction of the Israeli government."
Israel has come under increased international pressure as images and video footage of starving children has been pouring out of Gaza in recent weeks. The Israeli government over the weekend announced a tactical "pause" in its Gaza military campaign to allow more humanitarian assistance into the area, although critics such as Bushra Khalidi, Oxfam policy lead for the occupied Palestinian territory, described the Israeli measures as woefully inadequate in the face of mass starvation.
"Deadly airdrops and a trickle of trucks won't undo months of engineered starvation in Gaza," said Khalidi on Sunday. "What's needed is the immediate opening of all crossings for full, unhindered, and safe aid delivery across all of Gaza and a permanent cease-fire. Anything less risks being little more than a tactical gesture."
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Refuting Netanyahu's Lie, Trump Acknowledges 'Real Starvation' in Gaza
"Trump and Congress must decide: Will you continue to support the starvation of children, or are you willing to use all possible U.S. leverage to stop this horrific humanitarian disaster?" said Sen. Bernie Sanders.
Jul 28, 2025
U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday refuted fugitive Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's lie that "there is no starvation in Gaza"—where health officials reported 14 more deaths from malnutrition in the past 24 hours—as critics underscored that Trump is what one Democratic lawmaker called "a willing accomplice" to the horror.
Trump, who met British Prime Minister Keir Starmer in Turnberry, Scotland, was asked by a reporter whether he agrees with Netanyahu's false claim.
"I don't know. I mean, based on television, I would say not particularly because those children look very hungry," the president replied. "That's real starvation stuff. I see it, and you can't fake that."
Trump also repeated an Israeli claim that Hamas is stealing food aid—an assertion refuted by his own administration, as well as IDF officials.
The Gaza Health Ministry said Monday that at least 14 Palestinians had starved to death in the past 24 hours, bringing the number of malnutrition deaths to 147—including 88 children—since Israel launched it assault and siege of Gaza following the Hamas-led attack of October 2023.
Gaza's Government Media Office warned Monday that "there is an imminent risk of death for thousands of infants in the Gaza Strip due to the Israeli occupation's ban on the entry of baby formula."
U.S. Vice President JD Vance told reporters Monday during a visit to Canton, Ohio: "I don't know if you've all seen these images. You have got some really, really heartbreaking cases. You've got little kids who are clearly starving to death. Israel's got to do more to let that aid in. And we've also got to wage war on Hamas."
Israel has been accused by United Nations officials of "flagrant disregard" for International Court of Justice orders to prevent genocidal acts and allow humanitarian aid into Gaza.
Trump said Monday that the U.S. is "going to set up food centers where the people can walk in and no boundaries, we're not going to have fences."
More than 1,000 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli troops while seeking aid at distribution points run by the U.S.-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, according to the United Nations human rights office. Israel Defense Forces (IDF) officers and soldiers say they were ordered to shoot and shell civilians at GHF aid centers.
The president also said that the U.S. will "supply funds... to spend a little money on some food" for Gazans. On Sunday, the president claimed that the U.S. recently gave $60 million worth of food to Gaza "and nobody even acknowledged it."
"Nobody talks about it," he added. "And it makes you feel a little bad when you do that...and nobody said, 'Thank you very much.'"
Trump provided no evidence to support his $60 million claim. Last month, The Guardian reported that the U.S. had authorized a $30 million grant for the GHF.
The mounting starvation deaths in Gaza have garnered widespread U.S. media attention and drawn rebuke from an increasing number of American politicians—including staunch supporters of Israel.
Sen. Angus King (I-Maine) said Monday in a statement that "I cannot defend the indefensible... I am through supporting the actions of the current Israeli government and will advocate—and vote—for an end to any United States support whatsoever until there is a demonstrable change in the direction of Israeli policy."
Congressman Lloyd Doggett (D-Texas) said Sunday on social media: "More Palestinian children dying of starvation. Netanyahu's spokesperson keeps lying and his war by starvation keeps killing. Trump, once again, too weak to stand up to Netanyahu, is a willing accomplice. Belated, token airdrops offer no aid [for] any of the sick, disabled, and elderly still alive."
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt), a vocal critic of the Netanyahu government, posted the following on the social media site X:
Although the IDF said it had begun implementing "tactical pauses" in some parts of Gaza on Sunday, at least 62 Palestinians were killed by Israeli attacks in the strip, including 34 aid-seekers.
At least 59,773 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces in Gaza since October 2023, most of them women and children, according to the Gaza Health Ministry. More than 144,000 others have been wounded. At least 14,000 people are also missing and presumed dead and buried beneath the rubble of bombed buildings.
On Monday, the Israeli groups B'Tselem and Physicians for Human Rights-Israel joined the many international organizations and experts calling Israel's obliteration of Gaza a genocide. The International Court of Justice is currently weighing a genocide case against Israel brought by South Africa.
Meanwhile, Israel is seeking the Trump administration's assistance as it pursues a plan to ethnically cleanse Gaza of its Palestinians, including by forcibly relocating them into concentration camps. Trump previously proposed the ethnic cleansing of Gaza so that the coastal enclave can be transformed into the "Riviera of the Middle East."
On Monday, Trump claimed he told Netanyahu during a weekend phone call, "Bibi... you have to now maybe do it a different way."
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Advocates Decry Senate Confirmation of 'Anti-Abortion Extremist' to Lifetime Federal Court Seat
"Divine's confirmation makes clear that Trump lied to voters when he said he would 'leave it to the states,' and he is actively working to eliminate abortion access nationwide," said a prominent reproductive rights advocate.
Jul 22, 2025
Several advocacy groups expressed outrage on Tuesday after the United States Senate voted to confirm Missouri Solicitor General Joshua Divine to be a United States District Judge for the Eastern and Western Districts of Missouri.
Divine, who was confirmed by a vote of 51 in favor to 46 against, is one of several judicial nominees of U.S. President Donald Trump who has been singled out by advocates for what they describe as his extreme record on a number of issues ranging from reproductive freedoms to LGBTQ rights to relief for student loan borrowers.
Every member of the Senate Democratic caucus voted against Divine’s confirmation with the exception of Sen. Angus King (I-Maine), who voted in favor. All Republicans voting in the Senate on Tuesday supported Divine’s confirmation, while three GOP senators—John Kennedy of Louisiana, Markwayne Mullin of Oklahoma, and Mitch McConnell of Kentucky—did not vote.
Mini Timmaraju, president and CEO of abortion rights advocacy organization Reproductive Freedom for All, argued that Divine's nomination and confirmation were a sign that Trump and the GOP would not be content to leave abortion rights up to individual states.
"Divine's confirmation makes clear that Trump lied to voters when he said he would 'leave it to the states,' and he is actively working to eliminate abortion access nationwide," she said. "Federal courts are a critical line of defense to preserve reproductive healthcare, and these appointments are a dangerous sign of what's to come."
Winston Berkman-Breen, legal director of the Student Borrower Protection Center (SBPC), accused Divine of building a political career on the backs of student loan borrowers who were in dire need of relief from the massive debts they incurred while pursuing an education.
"Time and time again in his lawsuits challenging legal student loan payment and relief programs, Divine took extreme positions at odds with traditional judicial interpretations related to injury, standing, and venue," he said. "Because of Divine, millions of student loan borrowers remain buried in crushing debt. Divine's actions exceeded the bounds of zealous advocacy and were a direct affront to judicial procedure. Americans deserve a judge who will review the facts of the case before them and apply the law under the Constitution and as passed by Congress—not an ideologue who will manipulate those laws to obtain the outcome he prefers."
Lena Zwarensteyn, senior director of the fair courts program and an advisor at The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, didn't focus on any specific issue and instead took an all-of-the-above approach to condemning what she described as Divine's unfitness for the federal bench.
"The Senate's confirmation of Joshua Divine to the federal bench in Missouri... installs into a lifetime judgeship an individual who does not possess the requisite experience to be a federal judge and who has time and time again demonstrated significant hostility to our civil and human rights," she argued. "His limited legal career—which includes a record of intense opposition to reproductive rights, LGBTQ equality, student loan borrowers, and more—is disqualifying. Our courts, our communities, and our democracy deserve better. Senators must ensure that judicial nominees are fair-minded, actually qualified for the job, and faithful to the rule of law and Constitution rather than to an anti-civil rights agenda."
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