Sen. Chuck Schumer said he felt compelled to oust Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over his response to the ongoing Israel-Hamas war and the country's failure to come to an agreement to end the conflict in the Middle East, citing his fear over Israel's survival as a nation.
The 73-year-old Senate Majority Leader and highest-ranking Jewish official said he knew the speech he delivered last week on the Senate floor criticizing Netanyahu was risky, but it had to be done as the war continues to spill into its fifth month.
"This is so part of my core, my soul, my neshama," Schumer told the New York Times Monday, using the Hebrew word for 'soul.'
"I said to myself, 'This may hurt me politically; this may help me politically.' I couldn't look myself in the mirror if I didn't do it," the longtime New York senator explained.
The message he was trying to convey when calling for a new election before Netanyahu's term expires in October 2026 was "to say you can still love Israel and feel strongly about Israel and totally disagree with Bibi Netanyahu and the policies of Israel."
Schumer clarified, "Bibi could prevent any election until 2026," calling Netanyahu an "obstacle to peace" during his speech.
"I worry under his leadership, Israel would become such a pariah in the world and even in the United States, because I look at the numbers and they're rapidly decreasing. I had to speak out before it erodes," he said.
Schumer stopped short of outright calling for the Israeli Prime Minister's resignation, realizing it may be construed as unethical: "That is telling Israel what to do, and it's in the middle of a war."
Instead, he encouraged a new election in Israel, so "the chips fall where they may," he said, the Times reported.
Netanyahu responded to Schumer's speech on CNN's State of the Union Sunday.
"It's inappropriate to go to a sister democracy and try to replace the elected leadership there," he said. That's something that Israel, the Israeli public, does on its own, and we're not a banana republic."
"The majority of Israelis support the policies of my government. It's not a fringe government. It represents the policies supported by the majority of the people. If Sen. Schumer opposes these policies, he's not opposing me. He's opposing the people of Israel," Netanyahu added.
Relations between the U.S. and Israel have grown tense as the country previously struck down Hamas' proposal for a ceasefire last week. The terrorist organization demanded the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners, a permanent ceasefire, and the withdrawal of Israeli soldiers from Gaza—terms Israel did not agree with—according to CNN.
Israeli officials have repeatedly vowed to fight to "complete victory."
"Hamas is continuing to hold to unrealistic demands," the office of Netanyahu said in response, the outlet reported.
Ceasefire talks resumed earlier this week.
