The Democratic National Committee’s summer meeting this week is expected to be a sleepy affair of codifying internal rules and conducting regular party business.
Except for one meeting Tuesday morning, when DNC members will debate one of the most politically fraught issues of Democratic politics.
The DNC’s Resolutions Committee on Tuesday will consider dueling resolutions over Israel’s war in Gaza, each sure to provoke strong reactions from members and the broader community of Democratic voters.
The more modest measure, backed by DNC Chair Ken Martin, would call for a ceasefire in the conflict, while a more aggressive resolution calls for an arms embargo and suspension of military aid to Israel.
Resolutions approved by DNC members are symbolic gestures and do not dictate how the party’s elected officials vote. But Allison Minnerly, a new DNC member from Florida who introduced the latter proposal, said she sees it as a way for the Democratic Party to better align with its stated support of international law and common decency.
“I think there is a chance to do something that is the right thing,” Minnerly told NOTUS. “I think there is a chance to signal to Democrats that are elected in every elected office, but in particular in federal office, to continue living up the values of the Democratic Party.”
Democrats have struggled to respond to the conflict in Gaza, trying to balance the party’s traditional support for Israel with growing concern among many of the party’s rank-and-file voters that conflict has led to too many civilian deaths and widespread suffering. The issue is largely seen as one of the reasons Kamala Harris’ campaign underperformed last year, especially in a swing state like Michigan, which has many Muslim voters.
The concerns of Democratic voters have only intensified in recent months amid famine in Gaza.
Minnerly, who is 26, said she thinks if the committee passes her measure, it’ll send a strong message to the party’s grassroots that its leadership is responsive to their viewpoint.
“There has to be a conversation about how we make sure that our DNC establishment is closer to the position of our voters,” she said.
Minnerly said she’s unsure if the majority of members in the Resolutions Committee will approve her proposal; she said many members have expressed trepidation to her about the consequences of such a resolution on the wider Democratic Party.
But she hopes it starts a larger conversation in the party about the issue.
“It’s overdue,” she said. “But this is the start of an overdue conversation but is still very much evolving.”