These are good times for the Democratic Party. After arming, funding, and lending diplomatic cover to the murder of some 50,000 Palestinians during the Biden presidency, the Democratic party can now criticize the Republicans for war crimes. Par for the course.
The 100-year campaign of ethnic cleansing continues. The death toll in Gaza under the Trump presidency is around 25,000. The rate has dropped over the last several months, but there’s plenty of time for more. “Meet the new boss.”
More of the same inthe 19th congressional district of California. Here, Jimmy Panetta, son of the notorious Leon Panetta (of drone strike and torture fame), is still in office, and he’s firmly in support of the mass-murder of Palestinians … though he mightn’t want to word it that way. The pay is good, though.
As early as January 2017, Jimmy Panetta signaled his support for illegal Israeli settlements in the West Bank, opposing a UN Security Council Resolution 2334 which was passed due to a US abstention during the Obama Administration. The point of the abstention was to signal frustration with Israel’s illegal actions. Jimmy didn’t approve.
Jimmy has voted reliably to send arms to Israel, no strings attached. The only exceptions to his steady support for arms for Israel have been votes made during short-term congressional maneuvers. His final vote has always been for arms deliveries.
Vote for peace: Jimmy Panetta’s record supporting Israel and war is on the ballot
Panetta has consistently voted to ban the funding of UNRWA (United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East). Israel has of course banned UNRWA and the United States has banned funding of UNRWA. Several European countries maintain funding under heavy scrutiny, but no country other than Israel and the United States have banned funding UNRWA outright.
Panetta is against open access to information. On June 27, 2024, 23 of the 52 California Representatives, mostly Republicans, voted to prohibit funds from the international affairs budget from being “made available for the Department of State to cite statistics obtained from the Gaza Health Ministry.” Panetta was one of the 11 California Democrats who voted for that appropriations amendment.
Panetta is also against international law. On January 9, 2025, Panetta was one of 45 House Democrats to vote for the Republican-sponsored Illegitimate Court Counteraction Act which would move “to impose sanctions with respect to the International Criminal Court engaged in any effort to investigate, arrest, detain, or prosecute any protected person of the United States and its allies.” This was specifically intended to guard Benjamin Netanyahu and Yoav Gallant against the ICC. It has stalled in the Senate. Trump later sanctioned the ICC by executive order. He did so with Panetta on his side.
All this should come as no surprise, as Jimmy Panetta has taken a million dollars in campaign contributions from pro-Israel lobbies. He received a quarter million in the 2023–24 election cycle alone, exceeded only by Pete Aguilar among California Democrats.
Yes, he’s bought, and the check has posted. You might find him trying to clean up his reputation in the future. Don’t believe him. Vote for anyone but Genocide Jim.
So the thing is, I’ve been wondering: why does my Bay Area neighborhood have to be in the same district as Panettaville?* Have you seen how District 19 is drawn? I feel colonized. I feel grimy. I need a shower.
* Carmel Valley