Changes

Despite being a member of AIPAC (American Israel Public Affairs Committee), Sanders has never been exorbitantly pro-Israel. In fact, he currently has a +2 voting record from the AAI (American Arab Institute). Sanders' most notable acknowledgements of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict have been few and far between, and do not definitively suggest that he takes a side. After endorsing Jesse Jackson's, who is notoriously pro-Palestine, 1988 Presidential campaign, Sanders shed some light on his stance in the matter. This address, which was delivered on the heels of the first intifada's beginning, criticized Israeli violence against Palestinian civilians inhabiting Israeli-controlled settlements. Later in this address, Sanders remarked, “If the United States goes into the Middle East and demands a reasonable, a responsible, and a peaceful solution to the conflict that has gone there because of its clout because of the tremendous amounts of money that it is pouring into that region I think we can do it.” This idea has, to date, been the thesis under which Sanders directs all of his votes, policies, and rhetoric as they relate to Israel-Palestine.

In a nutshell, Sanders' stance is neither pro-Israel, nor pro-Palestine. He is, for lack of better term, pro-negotiation, as he firmly believes that the United States (and the rest of the world) should be more interested in having suits at a table, rather than boots on the ground.