Democratic voters also view their party as the defender of "out-groups." Truman recognizing the state of Israel was not about geopolitical strategy; he saw it as justice. Democrats saw support for Israel as penance for FDR keeping Jewish people out of the U.S. during the Holocaust.

April 10, 2026 - 00:50 UTC

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It was meant to be the ethnonationalist exception to a world moving away from ethnonationalism as a basis of political organization, as penance for the failure to provide Jewish people a meaningful right of self-determination. But ethnonationalism is a hell of a drug, anywhere it flourishes.
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"The Holocaust in American Life" (Novick 1999) fairly convincingly challenged that argument IIRC.
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Will check it out
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People who are under 40-45 have never thought of Israel as the underdog.
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My dad was in his 80s- his contemporaries saw Israel as a place they could go if it ever happened again- they would be welcomed no matter what because they are Jews. If you grew up thinking this about Israel- it’s safety to you- it’s not genocide. His generation can’t see that. They see their safety
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Now? Democrats see Palestinians as the oppressed party here. Particularly its younger voters. And it's not just woke white college students with noserings at $60K a year liberal arts schools sympathize with the Palestinians. Black and Latino voters are far more sympathetic to Palestinians.
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Now they have seen the genocide that Biden assisted with, maybe the fact that everyone covered up the truth for the sake of Bibi and we see the US brutalizing the Middle East for Bibi’s sake could it be that they don’t like? And it is not just young people noticing
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A Jewish FOM likes to tell a story about his Marine commander calling him into his office and explaining "I'm sorry, but you won't be going with us to Vietnam" ...the year I was born.
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I think it is a nuanced position for alot of people. For me, and my extended family, we 100% support Israel's right to exist, but we 100% oppose the current path of the Israeli government. Their own government actions have hardened alot of their enemies and currently making peace impossible.
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And, Israel got a lot of good press as a Cold War ally. Might also help explain the age gradient in pro-Israeli views.
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I’m a democrat and I stand with Israel over Palestine every day of the week.
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Did you see Slotkin's response to an Xavier student today when he called her out for her related lobbying money? Because holy shit.
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And for the Holocaust in general. Everyone believed in Never Again as our duty.

Probably not Trump's father, I don't think he believed in justice as a goal.
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