Bernie Sanders files three joint resolutions to block $660M in 'emergency' bomb sale to Israel
WASHINGTON, DC: Senator Bernie Sanders is leading a new effort to stop the US government from sending nearly $660 million in weaponry and 22,000 bombs to Israel.
This move follows the Trump administration's decision to use emergency powers to push the sale through without the usual congressional review process.
"Earlier this month, the Trump administration notified lawmakers of its intention to declare an “emergency” and bypass Congress to sell more than 20,000 bombs to the Israeli government," Sanders shared in an official press release.
Sanders looks to block sale of bombs to Israel
On Thursday, March 19, Senator Bernie Sanders filed three joint resolutions of disapproval to halt the transfer of weaponry to the Netanyahu government.
The specific arms package includes $298 million for 5,000 small-diameter bombs (250-pound), $209 million for 10,000 500-pound bombs, and $151.8 million for 12,000 1,000-pound bombs.
This conflict over arms exports occurs while the US and Israel are engaged in the ongoing Iran war, a conflict that has triggered missile and drone strikes across the Middle East.
This is, at least, the fourth time during President Trump’s second term that the State Department has bypassed congressional objections by declaring an emergency, a move critics say defies nearly 50 years of tradition and reduces lawmakers' oversight of US arms exports.
Lawmakers allege violations of Foreign Assistance Act
Sanders is joined by Democratic Senators Chris Van Hollen, Jeff Merkley, and Peter Welch, who argue the sale violates the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961.
This law requires that US arms transfers advance US foreign policy interests and avoid associating the United States with any human rights violations.
Expressing his opposition, Sanders stated, “Given the horrific destruction that Israel’s extremist government has wrought on Gaza, Iran and Lebanon, the last thing in the world that American taxpayers need to do right now is to provide 22,000 new bombs to the Netanyahu government.”
The Senator reiterated his statement while speaking on the All in with Chris Hayes podcast. "To give another 20K bombs to a country which committed genocide in Gaza happens to be among many other things, forget the moral issue, happens to be in violation of American law," Sanders said.
"You don’t sell arms to countries that violate international law and human rights. Clearly Israel has done that. Why anybody in their right minds would want to continue funding Israel is beyond me," he added.
Senator Van Hollen added that Trump is "bypassing Congress by invoking an emergency authority to supply additional bombs to this war, a crisis of his own making."
“Donald Trump, working in lockstep with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, launched a reckless and unconstitutional war. I do not support sending more offensive weapons to the Netanyahu government,” Merkley remarked.
While Welch stated, "I support these joint resolutions to make sure that we do not send another 20,000 bombs to Israel that will result in further destruction in Iran and Lebanon. We must end this war, and we must not send these bombs."
Senate voting patterns signal uphill battle for arms resolutions
The Senate Foreign Relations Committee has five calendar days to consider the resolutions before the sponsors can force a floor vote to discharge them from the committee.
However, such a vote faces an uphill battle. Since 1974, only one out of 127 filed joint resolutions of disapproval has been enacted into law, a 1985 effort that caused President Ronald Reagan to postpone a sale to Jordan.
Sanders led a similar effort in September 2024 to block five arms sales, but none received more than 19 votes.
This latest push follows a Wednesday vote where the Senate voted 47-53, largely along party lines, to sideline an Iran war powers resolution, marking the second such defeat for those attempting to stop the administration's military actions this month.
