The Shift: Biden official says Israel committed genocide in Gaza, but the U.S. must keep supporting it

Former U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman recently sat down with Bloomberg to talk about her time in the Biden administration and Trump’s foreign policy.

On the subject of Netanyahu, she didn’t mince words. She said the Israeli Prime Minister is responsible for a genocide in Gaza, which is obviously not something you usually hear from members of the Biden team. In fact, Sherman is the most senior official to use the word in relation to Israel.

You might assume that Sherman made the comments amid a wider condemnation of U.S. policy in the region. In fact, she left the White House in July 2023, so maybe she could have condemned the genocide without implicating herself. You might also think that, after referencing the systematic destruction of a people, she might call for an end to U.S. support for Israel, at least an end to military aid.

These assumptions would prove incorrect because Sherman actually insisted that the United States needs to back Israel and she made these comments in the same breath as the genocide remarks.

Here’s the exchange:

Bloomberg: It seems to be an increasing political issue now, for Democrats and Republicans.

It is critical that Israel remains an ally of the US and we protect the right of a Jewish state.

I also believe that Prime Minister has led us down a road — and we have been part of it — that has, in essence, created a genocide in Gaza that has destabilized the Middle East.

You are voicing a controversial view in calling Gaza a genocide. What is your reading of your community of Jewish Americans? Is this gaining currency?

I can’t make the legal analysis about whether it is literally a genocide, but there is no doubt that Gaza was demolished.

Palestinians deserve a home, dignity and peace. Israel absolutely deserves security and peace. I’m a strong supporter of Israel and the right of a Jewish state, but I am not a supporter of destroying any civilization, or any people — that goes for the Palestinians or the Iranian people, as much as I might find the regime odious.

Shortly after this interview, Sherman made an appearance on CNN, where she was asked what led her to refer to Gaza as a genocide.

“Things have changed, I spend a lot of time with younger people,” she explained. “I try to listen and learn as my parents did with me during the Vietnam war..”

Despite this alleged shift, Sherman reiterated her conclusion: “I support Israel and we must continue to support Israel. But there was a slaughter of the Palestinian people in Gaza.”

Sherman wasn’t challenged on this glaring contradiction at all, but back in reality 56% of Democrats say military aid to Israel needs to be decreased.

This week, DNC chair Ken Martin was pressed by Pod Save America’s Jon Favreau about the Democrats hiding an “autopsy report” on Kamala Harris’s presidential campaign. This report shows how the Gaza genocide cost Harris votes throughout the country.

When he became DNC Chair, Martin criticized the party for not releasing the report on Hilary Clinton’s 2016 campaign. Now, at the helm, he insists such a move is not helpful.

“We want to keep the focus on the lessons,” Martin told Favreau, which sure sounds like another big contradiction.

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The AIPAC shell game

This week, we reported on the Democratic primary in Pennsylvania’s 3rd district, where state representative Chris Rabb has made Palestinian human rights a central component of his campaign.

According to the most recent poll, Dr. Ala Stanford currently has a slight edge on Rabb. Stanford recently made headlines for comparing the use of the word “genocide” to the n-word. Days later, Drop Site News ran a story revealing that, despite consistent denials, Stanford has been receiving contributions from AIPAC.

Those contributions didn’t come directly from AIPAC. First they went through an unaffiliated PAC first.

Here’s Ryan Grim and Julian Andreone breaking it down:

The super PAC is called 314 Action Fund, and as of April 21, had spent more than $2.6 million boosting Stanford, according to the latest filings. The group’s most recent monthly filing reveals a $500,000 donation from Kimbark Foundation, a group whose only other donation is $500,000 to EDW Action Fund, another PAC that has previously acted as an AIPAC shell organization. In the 2024 cycle, AIPAC used EDW Action to secretly funnel money to support Maxine Dexter, also a pediatrician, in her race against Susheela Jayapal in Oregon. It’s stated purpose is to elect pro-choice Democratic women. 314 Action has reported just $2.8 million in independent expenditures, meaning their support for Stanford represents the bulk of their independent spending so far.

Stanford has also taken in more than $27,000 through Democracy Engine from major AIPAC donors in the first quarter of 2026; Democracy Engine is a vehicle used by AIPAC to bundle donor money and funnel it to preferred candidates.

This week, the American Prospect executive editor David Dayen reports on a similar situation in Nebraska’s 2nd district.

Democratic Majority for Israel (DMFI) recently spent $176,050 on a week-long ad buy in support of centrist candidate Denise Powell in that race. However, at a Nebraska Young Democrats forum, Powell told attendees that she would reject any contributions from AIPAC and DMFI. “I’m not accepting money from any special-interest group in this category,” she declared.

This obviously generated an immediate problem but, as Dayen reports, the Israel lobbying group sprung to action. The DMFI ads were nixed, but a group called the New Democrat Majority PAC increased its purchase of ads by the same amount as the canceled ones.

An internal email from Omaha’s ABC affiliate reveals exactly what happened: “Cancel spending for DMFI PAC and moving money to New Democratic Majority.”

“She has not taken any money or endorsements from any interest groups on this issue because it’s important that voters trust her to be an independent voice, and that has not changed,” a spokesperson for the Powell campaign told the Prospect. “As you know, campaigns cannot coordinate with independent expenditure activities and we have no control over outside spending.”

These recent developments showcase the modern challenge of “following the money,” when it comes to the U.S. political system. Pro-Israel groups will continue to spend big and find new, creative ways to conceal their involvement as Israel’s reputation continues to decline.