Senator Bernie Sanders introduces resolution to stop arms sales to Israel
Senator Bernie Sanders just spoke on the Senate floor in support of two resolutions that would stop the sale of offensive weapons to Israel over its bombardment of the besieged civilian population of Gaza.
Ahead of a vote on the resolutions scheduled for Wednesday night, Sanders delivered his plea for the Senate to block $675.7m in bombs paid for by US taxpayers and the sale of tens of thousands of fully automatic assault rifles in front on images of starving Palestinian children. He also placed a large stack of papers on his desk with the names of 18,500 children who have been killed by Israeli forces in Gaza published on Wednesday by the Washington Post.
“What the extremist Netanyahu government is doing now is not an effort to win a war; there is no military purpose in starving thousands and thousands of children,” Sanders said. “Let us be clear: this is not an effort to win a war; this is an effort to destroy a people.”
Sanders added that, by one estimate, 70% of the cost of destroying Gaza has been paid for by American taxpayers. He also noted that the arms sales clearly violate two US laws: the Foreign Assistance Act and the Arms Export Control Act.
“Tonight we have the power to act,” Sanders said. “The power to force Netanyahu and his extremist government to end this slaughter.”
The two resolutions introduced by Sanders were supported by colleagues including his allies Peter Welch, Vermont’s junior senator, and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the New York congresswoman who has toured the country with Sanders for “Fighting Oligarchy” rallies.
“The mass starvation in Gaza must end,” Welch said in remarks after Sanders spoke. “The forced displacement of 2 million Palestinians in Gaza must end.”
“It is unthinkable that at this moment, when a third of Gaza has not eaten in days, the Senate would green light the bombs, guns, and munitions that have already been used to kill 60,000 Palestinians,” Ocasio-Cortez said in a statement. “Today, every Senator has a choice to make: they can uphold US law by preventing the transfer of these weapons, or they can cower to Netanyahu and hand over the arms being used to perpetuate a genocide.”
In an interview with CNN on Tuesday night, Sanders was asked if Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, was lying when he said there is no starvation in Gaza. “Of course he’s lying,” Sanders replied. “He is a disgusting liar.”
Key events
Closing summary
This ends our live coverage of the second Trump administration for the day. We will return on Thursday morning, but here are the latest developments:
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The US senate voted overwhelmingly against two resolutions introduced by Bernie Sanders to block arms sales to Israel over its destruction of Gaza, but a dozen Democratic senators who voted against the move in April support it now.
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California Democrats who have entered the race to be the state’s next governor praised former vice-president Kamala Harris on Wednesday after her decision not to run for the office.
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Donald Trump announced on Wednesday that he has agreed to a new trade deal with South Korea that will subject imports to a 15% tariff rate. South Korean importers will pay no tariffs on US goods they purchase.
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Brown University announced on Wednesday it “reached a voluntary agreement with the federal government to restore funding for the University’s federally sponsored medical and health sciences research and resolve three open reviews assessing Brown’s compliance with federal nondiscrimination obligations”.
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The US Federal Reserve elected to hold its benchmark interest rate steady at between 4.25 and 4.5%, a rate it has maintained since the end of 2024. Two Trump-appointed officials on the central bank dissented.
Sanders measure to stop sale of $675m of bombs to Israel defeated in US senate
The senate just voted to defeat the second of two resolutions from Bernie Sanders to end arms sales to Israel, with 73 votes against and just 24 in favor.
Sanders’ resolution to end US sales of assault rifles to Israel overwhelmingly defeated in Senate
The Senate just voted overwhelmingly against the first of two resolutions introduced by Bernie Sanders on Wednesday to block arms sales to Israel over its destruction of Gaza.
The measure, SJ Res41, would have stopped the sale of tens of thousands of fully automatic assault rifles to Israel.
The final tally was 70 votes against and 27 in favor.
Chuck Schumer, the Democratic minority leader from New York, and Cory Booker, a Democratic senator of New Jersey, voted against the measure, but progressives like Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin, and Jeff Merkley of Oregon, were joined by moderates including Jon Ossoff of Georgia, Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire, Tim Kaine of Virginia, and Dick Durbin of Illinois, in supporting the effort to cut off arms supplies to Israel.
Twelve of the Democrats who voted for the measure previously voted in April against a similar resolution, NBC reports.
A vote on a second resolution, to block the sale of $675.7m in bombs, is now in progress.
Warnock endorses ‘vote to pressure Israel to stop famine in Gaza’
As the Senate begins to vote on resolutions introduced by Bernie Sanders that would stop arms sales to Israel, his Democratic colleague, Reverend Raphael Warnock of Georgia, said in a statement that he supports the measures.
It is wrong to starve children and other innocent civilians to death. Yet, whether through gross incompetence, woeful indifference, or some combination thereof, that is exactly what is happening right now in Gaza under the leadership of Benjamin Netanyahu and his government. It is a moral atrocity that cannot abide the conscience of those who believe in human dignity, freedom, and human thriving. That is why I will vote to support the Joint Resolution of Disapproval put before the Senate tonight.
I’ve made clear I support the state of Israel and its right to defend itself. Today, I urge the state of Israel, the United States, and the world to move as quickly as possible to get the people of Gaza the same nourishment and care that we would want for our own children.
I pray for a ceasefire and the return of the hostages home to their families, and look forward to resuming the work of securing peace and safety for all those in the region.
Elizabeth Warren calls for end of arms sales to Israel ahead of Senate vote
As the Senate continues to debate resolutions introduced by Bernie Sanders that would stop arms sales to Israel, ahead of a vote, Elizabeth Warren voiced her support for the measures.
“Donald Trump promised peace in Gaza, but he’s abandoned ceasefire talks while babies starve,” Warren wrote on Bluesky. “If Trump is too weak to act, then Congress must step up. No more US military support for Netanyahu to wage war in Gaza.”
At least 48 Palestinians killed and more injured while seeking food one day after Trump endorsed Israel-run aid distribution
As our colleague William Christou reports from Jerusalem, at least 48 Palestinians were killed and dozens were wounded on Wednesday while waiting for food at a crossing in Gaza, according to a local hospital that received the casualties.
The latest violence around aid distribution came one day after Donald Trump was praised for calling images of starving children there “terrible”, but also endorsed the chaotic Israeli-run system for aid distribution, with US support, that has led to the deaths of more than 1,000 Palestinians since May.
Israel’s ongoing military offensive and blockade have led to the “worst-case scenario of famine” in the coastal territory of some 2 million Palestinians, according to the leading international authority on hunger crises. A breakdown of law and order, since Israel insisted on replacing a functioning system of aid deliveries run by the United Nations for decades, has seen aid convoys overwhelmed by desperate crowds and live ammunition being fired at civilians seeking aid by Israeli forces and US contractors.
While Israel announced this weekend that it would allow more aid into Gaza, the new measures, which include daily pauses in the bombardment, as well as airdropped aid and humanitarian corridors for UN aid trucks, experienced aid workers have said that Israel has intentionally created the starvation crisis, which has seen 151 Palestinians die of hunger, more than half of whom died in the past month alone.
On Wednesday night, al-Shifa hospital in Gaza City said that the dozens who were killed and wounded were among crowds massed at the Zikim crossing, the main entry point for humanitarian aid to northern Gaza.
Associated Press footage showed bodies being ferried away from the scene of the shooting in ambulances and wooden carts, as well as crowds of people carrying bags of flour.
Senator Bernie Sanders introduces resolution to stop arms sales to Israel
Senator Bernie Sanders just spoke on the Senate floor in support of two resolutions that would stop the sale of offensive weapons to Israel over its bombardment of the besieged civilian population of Gaza.
Ahead of a vote on the resolutions scheduled for Wednesday night, Sanders delivered his plea for the Senate to block $675.7m in bombs paid for by US taxpayers and the sale of tens of thousands of fully automatic assault rifles in front on images of starving Palestinian children. He also placed a large stack of papers on his desk with the names of 18,500 children who have been killed by Israeli forces in Gaza published on Wednesday by the Washington Post.
“What the extremist Netanyahu government is doing now is not an effort to win a war; there is no military purpose in starving thousands and thousands of children,” Sanders said. “Let us be clear: this is not an effort to win a war; this is an effort to destroy a people.”
Sanders added that, by one estimate, 70% of the cost of destroying Gaza has been paid for by American taxpayers. He also noted that the arms sales clearly violate two US laws: the Foreign Assistance Act and the Arms Export Control Act.
“Tonight we have the power to act,” Sanders said. “The power to force Netanyahu and his extremist government to end this slaughter.”
The two resolutions introduced by Sanders were supported by colleagues including his allies Peter Welch, Vermont’s junior senator, and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the New York congresswoman who has toured the country with Sanders for “Fighting Oligarchy” rallies.
“The mass starvation in Gaza must end,” Welch said in remarks after Sanders spoke. “The forced displacement of 2 million Palestinians in Gaza must end.”
“It is unthinkable that at this moment, when a third of Gaza has not eaten in days, the Senate would green light the bombs, guns, and munitions that have already been used to kill 60,000 Palestinians,” Ocasio-Cortez said in a statement. “Today, every Senator has a choice to make: they can uphold US law by preventing the transfer of these weapons, or they can cower to Netanyahu and hand over the arms being used to perpetuate a genocide.”
In an interview with CNN on Tuesday night, Sanders was asked if Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, was lying when he said there is no starvation in Gaza. “Of course he’s lying,” Sanders replied. “He is a disgusting liar.”
California Democrats running for governor praise Kamala Harris after her decision not to enter race
California Democrats who have already entered the race to be the state’s next governor praised former vice-president Kamala Harris on Wednesday after her decision not to run for the office, despite leading in the polls, made all of their lives a little easier.
Katie Porter, the former congresswoman who studied consumer law with Elizabeth Warren, called Harris “a principled leader” and added: “I’m proud of the work we accomplished together on consumer protection during the housing crisis and grateful for her service to California and our country.” When Harris was California’s attorney general, in 2012, she appointed Porter, a bankruptcy law expert, to monitor the state’s $18 billion mortgage settlement with major banks in the wake of the financial crisis.
Xavier Becerra, who succeeded Harris as California’s attorney general and then served as health secretary in the Biden-Harris administration, hailed her as “a trailblazing leader” who chose to channel her “formidable energy and experience” into “other endeavors”.
Antonio Villaraigosa, a former Los Angeles mayor, voiced his “deep respect for Vice President Kamala Harris and her decades of leadership and public service to the people of California and our nation.” In hi statement, Villaraigosa, who suggested in May that both Harris and Becerra should be asked whether they were part of “a systematic cover-up to keep Joe Biden’s mental decline from the public”, strongly hinted that Harris was likely passing up on the race to become California’s governor in 2027 so that she could run for president again in 2028. “Her decision not to enter the race for Governor reflects her continued commitment to serving at the highest levels of government”, he wrote.
Eleni Kounalakis, California’s current lieutenant governor, released a video statement in which she emphasized that she is close to Harris. “I got a call from my friend Kamala Harris. I’m very honored that she called me before any announcements were made to tell me of her plans”, Kounalakis said. “I have so much respect and so much gratitude for the vice president’s leadership.”
There was no immediate statement from another potential candidate, the former Republican real estate developer Rick Caruso, who registered as a Democrat and spent $100 million on his unsuccessful run for Los Angeles mayor in 2022.
Caruso teased a run for governor on Tuesday, when he posted Instagram images of himself meeting with Willie Brown, and looking at a photo of the California state assembly. Brown, who once dated Harris, had suggested in a recent podcast interview that Harris might not win a race for governor and talked up the prospects of Caruso instead.
Trump announces trade deal to impose 15% tariffs on imports from South Korea, despite existing free trade agreement he signed
Donald Trump announced on Wednesday that he has agreed to a new trade deal with South Korea that will subject imports to a 15% tariff rate. South Korean importers will pay no tariffs on US goods they purchase.
The new arrangement comes seven years after the president negotiated a slightly revised version of the existing US-Korea Free Trade Agreement, known as Korus, under which almost 95% of the goods traded between the two nations were free of tariffs. When that agreement was struck, Trump called the deal “fair and reciprocal” and praised it as a win for US auto-makers, since South Korea agreed to phase out a 25% tariff on US-made trucks.
Trump said that South Korea agreed to invest $350bn in the US and purchase $100bn in US energy products.
Writing on his social media platform, Trump claimed that the new agreement meant that “South Korea will be completely OPEN TO TRADE with the United States, and that they will accept American product including Cars and Trucks, Agriculture, etc.”
Brown University agrees to pay $50m to settle dispute with Trump administration
Brown University announced on Wednesday it “reached a voluntary agreement with the federal government to restore funding for the University’s federally sponsored medical and health sciences research and resolve three open reviews assessing Brown’s compliance with federal nondiscrimination obligations”.
As part of the agreement, signed by Christina H Paxson, the president of Brown, attorney general Pam Bondi, education secretary Linda McMahon and health secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr, Brown will pay $50m “to state workforce development organizations operating in compliance with anti-discrimination laws” over the next 10 years.
One provision of the agreement stipulates that “Brown shall not maintain programs that promote unlawful efforts to achieve race-based outcomes, quotas, diversity targets, or similar efforts”. Defining the effort to bring diversity to campuses as a form of illegal discrimination against white students is a core element of the Trump administration’s ideological war on higher education.
“Accordingly,” the agreement adds, “Brown will provide a timely report to the United States summarizing its compliance with this obligation, including an assurance that Brown has acted responsibly to ensure its programs do not promote unlawful DEI goals.”
Another provision, which might seem to be at odds with the ban on promoting diversity, is a commitment from the university to combat antisemitism by taking actions “to support a thriving Jewish community, research and education about Israel, and a robust Program in Judaic Studies, through outreach to Jewish Day School students to provide information about applying to Brown, resources for religiously observant Jewish community members, renewed partnerships with Israeli academics and national Jewish organizations, support for enhanced security at the Brown-RISD Hillel, and a convening of alumni, students, and faculty to celebrate 130 years of Jewish life at Brown”.
The education secretary called the agreement as evidence that the Trump administration “is successfully reversing the decades-long woke-capture of our nation’s higher education institutions”.
At the start of his remarks, before touting what he called the supposed benefits of helping Americans to access their medical records on their phones, health secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr took a moment to praise the way Donald Trump has changed the White House since January.
As Kennedy recalled visiting the Oval office when his uncle, John F Kennedy, was president, he said that the White House had become, over time, drab. He then thanked Trump for making it now “the opposite of drab”, a compliment that brought a massive smile to the face of the president.
