The White House News

An effort by Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., to block certain U.S. weapons sales to Israel was overwhelmingly rejected by the U.S. Senate Wednesday evening.

Sanders’ joint resolution of disapproval, which was supported by Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md.; Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore.; and Sen. Peter Welch, D-Vt., intended to stop the White House’s latest arms sales to the Israeli military. An effort to block the sales of tank rounds to Israel was voted down 79-18, and a measure intending to block mortar round shipments was rejected 78-19.

Speaking on the Senate floor, Sanders claimed the Israeli government is controlled “not only by right-wing extremists, but by religious zealots.”

“It is time to tell the Netanyahu government that they cannot use U.S. taxpayer dollars and American weapons in violation of U.S. and international law and our moral values despite receiving $18 billion from U.S. taxpayers in the last year,” Sanders said. 

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“And being the largest historical recipient of U.S. foreign aid, the Netanyahu government has completely ignored the repeated requests of President Biden and the U.S. government.”

The 83-year-old politician also decried living conditions in Gaza during his speech.

“Right now, there is raw sewage running through the streets of Gaza, and it is very difficult for the people there to obtain clean drinking water,” Sanders said. “Every one of Gaza’s 12 universities has been bombed … as have many hundreds of schools. For 13 months, there has been no electricity in Gaza.

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“As I have said many, many times, Israel had the absolute right to respond to that horrific Hamas attack as any other country would,” Sanders concluded. “I don’t think anybody here in the United States Senate disagrees with that. But Prime Minister Netanyahu’s extremist government has not simply waged war against Hamas. It has waged an all-out war against the Palestinian people.”

Despite the vote, Sanders’ effort was not wholly unpopular. Earlier this week, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., signaled support for the Vermont Independent’s proposal.

“The failure by the Biden administration to follow U.S. law and to suspend arms shipments is a grave mistake that undermines American credibility worldwide,” Warren said in a statement to The Guardian.

“If this administration will not act, Congress must step up to enforce U.S. law and hold the Netanyahu government accountable through a joint resolution of disapproval.”

Fox News Digital’s Jessica Sonkin and Alec Schemmel contributed to this report.

Conservative Republican Nick Begich will win a tight race for Alaska’s lone seat in the House of Representatives, according to the Associated Press.

Begich defeated his main rival, Rep. Mary Peltola, D-Alaska, the first Native Alaskan in Congress, and one of only five House Democrats currently representing a district won by President-elect Trump in 2020.

The win widens the Republican majority in the House to 219 and 213 for Democrats.

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The GOP candidate is no stranger to politics, having been born into a prominent political family in Alaska – made up of mostly Democrats.

His grandfather, Nick Begich, Sr., was an Alaska congressman, before mysteriously disappearing on a flight and being pronounced dead in 1972. His uncle, Mark Begich, was a U.S. senator for Alaska from 2009 to 2015.

The other two hopefuls in the race were Alaska Independence Party candidate John Wayne Howe and Democratic candidate Eric Hafner.

Alaska is one of only two states to use ranked-choice voting in federal elections, something that benefited Peltola in 2022, when Begich and former Gov. Sarah Palin knocked each other out of the running by splitting the Republican vote.

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Republicans took a lesson from that defeat, however, and instead, coalesced around Begich earlier in the race.

Alaska has just one House seat given its modest population compared to more densely packed states. It is also one of only two states to use ranked-choice voting in its federal elections.

Peltola won her seat in a special election following the sudden death of longtime Rep. Don Young, R-Alaska, in 2022.

Young’s daughters and several former staffers endorsed Peltola for re-election in the November race later that year.

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The moderate Democrat has been known to break from her party on certain climate and energy issues, among others.

Begich’s victory is a much-needed win for House Republicans who have fought tooth-and-nail to retain and even expand their majority.

He was added to the House GOP campaign arm’s “Young Guns” list in August of this year, giving him access to National Republican Congressional Committee resources, support, and advisement.

Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub. 

President-elect Trump chose former ambassador and Rep. Pete Hoekstra for his pick for the U.S. ambassador to Canada.

“Pete is well-respected in the Great State of Michigan – A State we won sizably. He represented Michigan’s 2nd District in Congress for nearly 20 years, where he was also Chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, and was a great help to our Campaign as Chairman of the Michigan Republican Party,” Trump wrote in a Wednesday evening release.

Trump said that Hoekstra would help the president-elect’s “American First” agenda.

“In my Second Term, Pete will help me once again put AMERICA FIRST,” he wrote. “He did an outstanding job as United States Ambassador to the Netherlands during our first four years, and I am confident that he will continue to represent our Country well in this new role. Thank you, Pete!”

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Hoekstra was the U.S. ambassador to the Netherlands during Trump’s first term. 

Prior to his ambassadorship, he served 18 years in the U.S. House of Representatives, representing the 2nd District of Michigan, and served as chairman and ranking member of the House Intelligence Committee. 

Trump’s pick of Hoekstra on Wednesday came after he tapped former Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker to become U.S. ambassador to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in his new administration.