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greg casar
Progressive Caucus Chair Leads Demand for AI CEOs to Testify After Hacking Spree Revelations
"Advanced AI models pose a clear risk to the safety and security of the American people," Rep. Greg Casar and nearly 20 other Democrats warned.
Aug 10, 2026
The chairman of the Congressional Progressive Caucus on Monday led a group of House Democrats in calling on the top executives of leading artificial intelligence companies to testify under oath following a series of hacking incidents that underscored the industry's alarming lack of safeguards.
"Advanced AI models pose a clear risk to the safety and security of the American people," Rep. Greg Casar (D-Texas) and 18 other Democrats wrote in a letter urging House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) to schedule "open hearings with the CEOs of America's largest artificial intelligence companies" as swiftly as possible.
The letter points to recent announcements by OpenAI and Anthropic that their AI models went rogue and hacked into the networks of other organizations. The incidents "are serious in and of themselves," the Democratic lawmakers wrote Monday, "and they may be the canary in the coal mine warning of much more serious problems if these models continue to advance without regulation."
"From hospitals to banks, institutions that Americans count on could be quickly jeopardized by this sort of instability. The American people deserve clear answers about the causes of these incidents, what failures or potential negligence at the companies led to them, and the types of regulation required to make sure they never happen again. Congress must act before such an incident leads to a much larger catastrophe."
Separately, Casar and other House Democrats wrote directly to OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei demanding detailed information about the recently disclosed hacking incidents, which were described as a "chilling leap" for the rapidly developing technology.
"Given the serious risk that frontier AI models can pose," the lawmakers wrote, "it is imperative we have a detailed understanding of how this security incident unfolded, including any potential negligence."
The House Democrats' letters were sent on the same day that Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) demanded that the CEOs of OpenAI, Anthropic, and Meta pause AI development, citing the hacking incidents as well as the horrifying potential for the technology to "lead to new bioweapons that result in the deaths of tens of millions of people."
"Pause AI development. It is not too late to avoid disaster," Sanders wrote. "Stop building machines that humans cannot control."
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'As Toxic as AIPAC': Casar Urges Dems to Reject AI Industry Money and Protect Workers
"We need to clearly be 100% on the side of workers who are vulnerable, kids who are vulnerable, everyday people who are vulnerable to mass surveillance."
Aug 07, 2026
Congressional Progressive Caucus Chair Greg Casar this week urged fellow Democrats to reject campaign support from artificial intelligence industry lobbyists and unveiled a bill intended to help protect workers from AI-related mass unemployment.
The Texas congressman took aim at Leading the Future (LTF), a pro-industry super political action committee (PAC), and "AI billionaires that are lobbying for no regulation," during a Thursday interview with MS NOW. He argued that "we need to clearly be 100% on the side of workers who are vulnerable, kids who are vulnerable, everyday people who are vulnerable to mass surveillance."
Casar drew a comparison to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, whose super PAC is spending millions against Democratic candidates critical of the Israeli government and its forces' genocidal violence in the Gaza Strip. He predicted that LTF and the "big anti-AI regulation donors" would soon be "as toxic as AIPAC is today."
According to AI Money Watch, a project launched in June by the progressive advocacy group Demand Progress, "LTF entered 2026 with $70 million cash on hand and operates through affiliated super PACs (Think Big PAC in New York, American Mission PAC in Texas) and a dark-money 501(c)(4) arm called Build American AI."
AI Money Watch found that the two candidates with the most LTF money spent on them so far during this cycle are both former congressional Democrats from Illinois. The group poured over $1 million into supporting Jesse Jackson Jr., who lost the primary for the 2nd District, and AIPAC-backed Melissa Bean, who beat a progressive in the state's 8th District.
LTF also spent over $1 million each on Ben McAdams, a former Democratic congressman running in Utah's 1st District, and Congressman Ritchie Torres (D-NY), who is formally endorsed by the group. Rounding out the top 5 is James Kingston, a Georgia Republican who won the 1st District primary, with over $960,000 spent on him.
Casar told MS NOW that rejecting such support could help his party earn the trust of voters: "If Democrats clearly stand with the 75% plus of Americans that want sensible AI regulations to prevent mass unemployment, mass surveillance, or mass national security risks, I think we should win over the voters... Even if it means we don't win over all the money."
Gallup found last September that 80% of US adults believe the government should prioritize "maintaining rules for AI safety and data security, even if it means developing AI capabilities at a slower rate." In March, 76% of respondents to a Americans for Responsible Innovation poll said that they had concerns about AI tools enabling unprecedented government surveillance of citizens.
A June poll conducted by Justice Research Group for Working Families Power found that 85% of working-class voters support large-scale retraining and apprenticeship programs for workers whose jobs are changed by artificial intelligence, 73% worry that AI will lead to job losses, and 62% fear the rapidly developing technology would personally affect them or people close to them.
Casar partnered with Reps. Valerie Foushee (D-NC) and Sara Jacobs (D-Calif.) on Thursday to introduce the AI Tax and Work Protection Act, a bill that would tax industry giants to fund a Work Protection Administration charged with creating jobs to offset layoffs.
"This bill says: We will not let AI billionaires get rich by putting you out of work," said Casar. "Right now, the path we are on is clear: AI will turn a couple of billionaires into trillionaires but leave millions without work. That is unacceptable. And right now, the federal government is doing nothing to protect workers from the threat of AI mass unemployment. Our bill would protect American workers by making big AI companies pay their fair share."
The bill is backed by various policy experts and advocacy organizations, including the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees; Groundwork Action; and Demand Progress Action—whose executive director, Sean Vitka, applauded Casar's "continued leadership on artificial intelligence."
"Serious, resilient proposals to address the unfolding impacts of this rapidly advancing technology are far too hard to find in Congress," said Vitka. "Some policymakers don't take AI seriously enough, and some don't understand it at all. With this legislation, Rep. Casar is instead demonstrating the kind of policymaking vision needed to meet the moments ahead."
Related legislation recently introduced by progressives in Congress includes the American AI Sovereign Wealth Fund Act proposed in June by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), which would give the public "a direct ownership stake" in the largest artificial intelligence companies in the country, and the landmark data center moratorium bill unveiled in March by Sanders and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY).
In a sign of how the public is feeling about "AI taking our jobs," data centers driving up utility bills, and "surveillance tech tracking our every move," a coalition of groups is planning a week of action from August 9-16 "to demand that our elected officials stand with the people—not Big Tech billionaires."
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House Progressive Chair Says 'Every Single Cent' of Trump Tariff Refunds Should Go to Consumers
Consumers bore the vast majority of the costs of Trump's illegal tariffs, but it's the large corporations that raised prices who are seeing massive refunds.
Aug 03, 2026
Congressional Progressive Caucus Chair Greg Casar (D-Texas) said on Monday that "every single cent" of the refunds for President Donald Trump's illegal tariffs should go to consumers who bore the brunt of the financial strain rather than the large corporations currently receiving them.
"Apple got a $2.2 billion tariff refund. Amazon got $600 million," Casar wrote in a post to social media. "Trump is sending the 'refunds' to the companies, not working people."
The Supreme Court struck down many of Trump's sweeping tariffs in February, ruling that he could not impose them unilaterally using powers under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act of 1977.
A group of 25 Democratic states sued the Trump administration on Monday for once again attempting to reimpose the tariffs under a different law, the 1974 Trade Act.
According to the Congressional Budget Office report from February 2026, about 70% of the tariffs were being passed onto consumers in the form of higher prices, while businesses absorbed about 30% of the cost.
Companies were able to pass on even more of the costs to consumers by hiking prices of domestic goods as well, meaning ordinary people were forced to swallow about 95% of the overall cost.
Yale's Budget Lab estimated that Trump's full tariff regime was costing the average household about $2,400 annually. Even after the Supreme Court rolled them back, the Budget Lab estimates that households will pay an extra $1,100 per year.
But the system for refunding the approximately $166 billion taken as part of the unlawful tariff regime allows only "importers" to apply for reimbursement, meaning the refunds have largely flowed to big companies who get to decide how much, if any, of the windfall they want to trickle down. So far, it does not seem to be very much.
Amazon disclosed on Thursday that it was participating in the refund process and that it had received over $600 million from the federal government in quarter two.
Brian Olsavsky, Amazon’s finance chief, said there was a "limited set of circumstances” in which the company could find examples of it directly passing prices along to consumers, since third-parties are the importers for most products, but said it would refund them when they could be identified.
He added that the refunds would also be invested in “low prices for customers," though he provided no details on how that would work.
Apple, meanwhile, is one of the biggest beneficiaries of the refunds. In a press release on Thursday, the company celebrated that the tariff refunds on their own were worth “2 percentage points” of its 50.1% gross margin, which AppleInsider calculated put the total refund at about $2.2 billion, though its most recent earnings report did not disclose the full amount.
But there's no indication that any of that windfall will be seen by consumers, even through lowered prices, let alone through any sort of reimbursement program.
"While Apple is celebrating its margins, it won’t stop your next MacBook Air from becoming more expensive and more scarce," wrote Kyle Barr on Monday for Gizmodo. "Last month, Apple increased prices for practically all its various products."
Other companies have also received or are expecting refunds in the billions or hundreds of millions, including Ford, General Motors, UPS, Nike, and Walmart, though only some have indicated plans to pass on even part of the savings to consumers.
Rep. Mark Pocan said it was "just another transfer of wealth from everyday Americans to mega-corporations."
Several pieces of legislation have been introduced in Congress aiming to provide tariff relief for consumers.
One bill introduced by Reps. Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.) and Frank Mrvan (D-Ind.) would require companies to reduce prices in accordance with the size of the refund they receive. Another from Rep. Mike Thompson (D-Calif.) would create an individual tariff refund tax credit and tax corporations unless they absorbed tariff costs rather than passing them to consumers.
None of these bills have advanced out of committee or received a floor vote.
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Progressive Caucus Leader Says Trump 'Too Busy Cashing In' to Regulate AI
Major AI firms are reportedly set to meet with White House officials this week to discuss a voluntary regulatory framework.
Aug 03, 2026
President Donald Trump on Monday faced accusations of being "asleep at the wheel" when it comes to regulating artificial intelligence—as well as being focused on how he can personally profit from the industry.
Trump in June signed an executive order that gave federal agencies 60 days to develop a regulatory framework where AI companies could voluntarily submit their new models for government review before being released.
However, details about the AI evaluation program are still lacking.
CNN's Hadas Gold reported on Monday that "as of last Friday several industry sources told me they hadn’t seen draft details" about the program, although an administration official said that the framework has been completed and that "discussions with industry about next steps are underway."
Gold also reported that major AI firms OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, and Meta, among others, are expected to meet with White House officials on Tuesday to discuss the plan.
Rep. Greg Casar (D-Texas), chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, said that the president's voluntary approach to regulation is "completely failing to keep us safe from the dangers of AI."
"He took millions from AI billionaires," wrote Casar in a Monday social media post. "Now in the wake of extremely dangerous AI cybersecurity problems he says he’s set up 'voluntary' review that no one has seen. Asleep at the wheel. Too busy cashing in to protect our jobs or national security."
Companies in the AI industry are among those that have donated to Trump's effort to build a $600 million ballroom, and to the president's 2024 campaign.
Rep. Ted Lieu (D-Calif.) also slammed the administration's approach to regulation, arguing that it is "letting the AI industry run wild."
"The upcoming executive order on AI is COMPLETELY VOLUNTARY," Lieu emphasized. "That means any AI company can totally ignore it. Ridiculous."
Both OpenAI and Anthropic last week revealed that their AI systems recently went rogue and hacked into other companies during cybersecurity testing.
Trump's refusal to make the government review optional for AI giants comes after a previous order he signed last year, aimed at preventing state-level regulation of the industry.
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Casar Demands Hearing After OpenAI Model Goes 'Full Cybercriminal' on Another Firm
"AI systems are creating real-world consequences," said one expert. "Congress should treat this with the urgency it deserves.”
Jul 29, 2026
US Rep. Greg Casar on Wednesday called for a congressional hearing following reporting that the OpenAI artificial intelligence model that autonomously breached the systems of the open-source platform Hugging Face during recent internal testing also independently hacked another tech company.
Akshat Bubna, chief technology officer at New York-based Modal Labs, told Reuters that OpenAI's model exploited vulnerable code written by a customer that was hosted on the company's platform.
Last week, calls for stronger AI guardrails mounted after OpenAI CEO Sam Altman admitted to a "significant security incident" during evaluation of one of the ChatGPT maker's models.
The target of that breach, the popular open-source platform Hugging Face, said Tuesday that the OpenAI model—widely described in the press as "rogue"—broke into a sandbox "hosted on a third-party provider's infrastructure" and used it to launch a broader attack.
Bubna stressed that Modal's platform was "not compromised in any way."
Experts underscored that OpenAI's purportedly "rogue" model was, in fact, performing a specific assigned task, which involved executing complex cyberattacks and exploiting vulnerabilities in controlled scenarios.
However, AI specialists said the incident illustrated the problem of misalignment. As artificial intelligence advances to the point where it will very likely outsmart humans, the challenge of ensuring that advanced systems reliably pursue goals that match what humans actually want becomes increasingly difficult—and dangerous to the point where pioneers and preeminent experts in the field, including Altman, believe there is a growing chance that AI could one day cause human extinction.
Responding to Wednesday's reporting, Casar (D-Texas)—who chairs the Congressional Progressive Caucus—said on social media: "Today we learned more disturbing news about OpenAI's security breach. Sam Altman should answer questions under oath."
"Congress should immediately hold public hearings with the CEOs of big AI companies about the threat their technology poses to national security and American jobs," he argued.
Casar has been a leading voice in Congress for AI regulation. However, instead of advocating a pause or slowdown on AI development, he has focused on trying to ensure that the economic benefits of the rapidly developing technology are broadly shared and that companies cannot use AI to exploit workers or consumers.
Last year, Casar and Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.) introduced the Stop AI Price Gouging and Wage Fixing Act, a proposal to curb the growing trend of “surveillance-based price setting" in which companies utilize customer data to maximize profits.
In May, Casar and Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) called for a tax on artificial intelligence firms that would fund programs to help workers replaced by AI.
The consumer advocacy group Public Citizen also weighed in Wednesday on what it called the "growing national security and public safety implications of frontier AI systems."
“OpenAI CEO Sam Altman is in Washington this week, and he should not be allowed to leave DC without Congress seeking to understand, from him, publicly how one of the company’s most advanced AI systems escaped its intended testing environment and reportedly carried out offensive cyber operations affecting multiple companies,” JB Branch, the group's director of federal AI governance, said in a statement.
"The American people deserve a full accounting of what happened, why existing safeguards failed, and what concrete steps are being taken to prevent it from happening again," he continued. "Most importantly, Congress must act, not rely on voluntary action by Big Tech companies. AI systems are creating real-world consequences. Congress should treat this with the urgency it deserves.”
“The federal government must develop emergency authorities and response capabilities for advanced AI systems," Branch added.
"If a frontier model demonstrates dangerous autonomous behavior, the government cannot be left relying solely on private companies to decide when—or whether—to pause, contain, or disable it. A credible national emergency preparedness framework is now an essential component of AI governance.”
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'Seismic Shift' as Over 100 House Democrats Vote to Cut Off US Military Aid to Israel
"This should be a blaring wake-up call for Democratic leaders," said one campaigner. "The political tide is clearly turning against unconditional US military support for Israel."
Jul 15, 2026
Nearly half of all Democrats in the House of Representatives voted Wednesday to cut off US military aid to Israel, a move that underscored a dramatic shift away from the US support the Mideast ally has enjoyed for nearly 60 years.
While House lawmakers ultimately rejected Rep. Thomas Massie's (R-Ky.) amendment to a national security spending bill that would have eliminated the $3.3 billion in annual foreign military financing provided to Israel’s military, the details of the vote were viewed as an encouraging sign by defenders of Palestine and the rule of law.
Massie and 103 Democrats voted for the measure, while 215 Republicans and 98 Democrats rejected it. The overall tally was 104 for, 314 against, and 10 "present" votes, with 9 absences.
"I cannot vote for aid to a country that committed genocide and has used tax dollars to detain Americans like me," Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) said ahead of the vote, referring to an incident in which heavily armed residents of an Israeli settler colony stopped and surrounded him last week in the illegally occupied West Bank of Palestine.
Speaking to reporters after the vote, Congressional Progressive Caucus Chair Greg Casar (D-Texas)—who had urged colleagues to support Massie's amendment—noted, "It used to be that just a small number of House Democrats would vote against sending taxpayer dollars to weapons for the Israeli military."
"Today, over 100 House Democrats voted for a measure to block billions of dollars in weapons to [Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu," he continued. "That is enormous progress. That is a victory for our movement, for security, peace, and justice for all people."
The vote, Casar said, "sasends a strong message to Netanyahu that the days are over of an unaccountable blank check to his wars and his war crimes, at least from the Democratic Party."
"So this is an important moment because nothing will be the same on this issue ever again, I think, after this vote," he added.
CPC Chair @RepCasar, Deputy Chair @Ilhan Omar and @USProgressives on the historic vote by a majority of House Democrats to block $3 billion in weapons to Israel pic.twitter.com/T58q6J5LHZ
— Keane Bhatt (@KeaneBhatt) July 15, 2026
Speaking after Casar, Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) said that she was "surprised" by many of her colleagues' votes in favor of the amendment, "and I am proud of them."
"I am proud that they have finally decided to lead with their morals, that they finally dared to stand up, and that we are all finally listening to our constituents, who have been asking us to do the right thing for many years," she added.
The high vote count in favor of Massie's amendment came after a "dear colleague" letter from House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries' (D-NY) expressing his opposition to the measure.
Palestine and human rights defenders hailed Wednesday's vote.
“Today’s vote reflects a seismic shift in US politics. What was once unquestioning bipartisan consensus to fund Israel’s atrocities against Palestinians is now breaking apart," Jewish Voice for Peace Action political director Beth Miller said in a statement. "While it is shameful that the House failed to pass this amendment, it is also now clear that it is impossible for Congress to ignore our voices."
"The overwhelming majority of Democratic voters are demanding that we halt US military funding to Israel, and every Democrat who ignored these calls should fear for their seat,” Miller added.
Margaret DeReus, executive director of policy projects at the Institute for Middle East Understanding (IMEU), said Wednesday's vote "reflects the popular will of Americans, and the overwhelming majority of Democratic voters who do not want to see another penny of our tax dollars fund Israel’s genocidal military."
"No more weapons to Israel is a principled demand, a legal obligation, and now a political necessity for any Democrat in office," DeReus added. "Democratic lawmakers who continue to stand with [the American Israel Public Affairs Committee's] fringe agenda of funding to Israel, and against their voters on the moral issue of our time, are inviting a primary challenge.
The United Nations' International Court of Justice is currently weighing a genocide case against Israel filed by South Africa and formally supported by nearly 20 nations. A UN panel of experts concluded last year that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza.
Meanwhile, the International Criminal Court has issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Yoav Gallant, his former defense minister, for alleged crimes against humanity and war crimes in Gaza, where more than 250,000 Palestinians have been killed or wounded, most of them civilians, since the Hamas-led attack of October 7, 2023, including over 9,000 people who are missing and presumed dead and buried beneath rubble.
In addition to the $3.3 billion in annual military aid the US gives Israel under a 2016 memorandum of understanding signed by then-President Barack Obama, the Biden and Trump administrations have provided billions of dollars in additional armed aid to Israel since it began waging its US-backed war on Gaza.
All told, the US has provided approximately $174 billion in direct bilateral assistance and missile defense funding—over $300 billion when adjusted for inflation—since the modern Israeli state's atrocity-laden founding in 1948. This makes Israel the largest overall beneficiary of US foreign aid since World War II.
US aid dramatically increased after the 1967 Israeli occupation of the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and Gaza, and the attack that same year by Israeli forces on the USS Liberty, which killed or wounded more than 200 Navy sailors in what numerous senior US officials believed was a deliberate attack. Last month, Massie introduced a resolution honoring the 34 Americans killed and 174 wounded in the Liberty attack.
Demand Progress senior policy adviser Cavan Kharrazian said in a statement that "congressional Democrats are finally starting to catch up to the American people, who no longer want to give Israel a blank check."
"This should be a blaring wake-up call for Democratic leaders," Kharrazian added. "The political tide is clearly turning against unconditional US military support for Israel. Leadership can no longer dismiss this position as marginal or politically untenable. Members should listen to their constituents, stop shielding Israel’s government from accountability, and support future efforts to end the flow of US weapons and military financing."
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Progressive Caucus Leader Urges 'Yes' Vote on Amendment to End US Military Aid to Israel
"The American people are crying out for an end to US tax dollars subsidizing Israel's military."
Jul 14, 2026
After House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries blew what one organizer called “a real opportunity... to show he’s listening” to the Democratic Party’s base by opposing an amendment to end US military aid to Israel, the head of the Congressional Progressive Caucus on Tuesday urged colleagues to support the measure.
As Common Dreams reported earlier Tuesday, Jeffries (D-NY) announced in a "dear colleague" letter that he would oppose Rep. Thomas Massie's (R-Ky.) amendment to a national security spending bill that would eliminate the $3.3 billion in annual foreign military financing provided to Israel’s military under a memorandum of understanding signed by then-President Barack Obama in 2016.
The US has also given billions of dollars in additional armed aid to Israel since it began waging its US-backed war on Gaza after the Hamas-led attack of October 7, 2023.
The minority leader called the amendment "overly broad" and said it would limit the US' ability to "confront Hamas."
Jeffries' letter came "just weeks after his fundraising committee received the largest earmarked disbursement in the history of AIPAC's political action committee," Sludge's Donald Shaw reported Tuesday, referring to the American-Israel Public Affairs Committee, the congressman's single-largest campaign donor.
Massie's effort comes just weeks after the Republican-controlled House of Representatives blocked a separate amendment introduced by the Kentucky Republican and Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) to remove a provision of the proposed $1.15 trillion National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for 2027 that would establish a formal “United States–Israel Defense Technology Cooperation Initiative," which critics argue deepens military integration between the two allies under the guise of reducing aid.
Responding to Jeffries' letter, Congressional Progressive Caucus (CPC) Chair Greg Casar (D-Texas) sent one of his own, contending that "the American people are crying out for an end to US tax dollars subsidizing Israel’s military."
"At a time when millions are struggling to make ends meet, we are sending billions of dollars to a military that has killed tens of thousands of civilians in Gaza, the West Bank, and Lebanon, destabilized the region, and helped lead us into war with Iran," Casar noted.
"Over the weekend, the Israeli military detained a member of Congress attempting to conduct oversight in the West Bank," his letter continues, referencing a recent incident involving Khanna. "We cannot continue to subsidize this."
Israel's war on Gaza alone has left more than 250,000 Palestinians dead or wounded (including people who are missing and presumed dead and buried beneath rubble) and around 2 million others forcibly displaced, starved, or sickened. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Yoav Gallant, his former defense minister, are wanted by the International Criminal Court for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity, while the International Court of Justice is weighing a genocide case filed against Israel by South Africa and formally backed by nearly 20 nations.
United Nations experts; Israeli and international scholars, jurists, and human rights groups; and US lawmakers including Casar are among those who have concluded that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza.
"At its best, the Progressive Caucus’ role is to be an independent voice and lead on important issues of peace and human rights," Casar's letter asserts. "After the Israeli government has killed more than 70,000 people in Gaza and helped lead the United States into a destabilizing, deadly war with Iran, we are called to act."
"The Democratic Party needs a new approach to Israel and Palestine," Casar stressed. "When Democrats retake the majority in November, I hope the Progressive Caucus can help lead our party toward a position that secures safety, dignity, and self-determination for Palestinian and Israeli civilians alike."
Both Casar and the CPC are supporters of the Block the Bombs Act, first introduced in May 2025 by Rep. Delia C. Ramirez (D-Ill.) and now backed by more than 60 lawmakers. The CPC has also endorsed Massie's amendment.
US public opposition to Israel has grown alongside the death toll in Gaza. More than half of Democratic voters surveyed for an Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll published last week said they believe Israel is committing genocide in Gaza. An August 2025 Quinnipiac poll found that 60% of respondents opposed additional military aid to Israel, while just 32% supported it. Opposition was especially high among Democrats (75%) and independents (66%).
Noting these figures, the progressive grassroots group RootsAction said Tuesday that "Jeffries has turned his back on nearly 75% of Democrats who say they want military aid to Israel to be halted" and "has chosen instead to side with the Democratic Party old guard—the same dominant faction that lost twice to [President] Donald Trump."
"Jeffries’s stance is morally unconscionable and politically myopic," RootsAction added. "For nearly three years, Israel has committed genocide in Gaza in full view of the world. Polling has shown that the Democratic Party leadership’s inability to distance itself from the onslaught in Gaza cost its candidates many votes in 2024. This pattern will repeat if the party is unable to change its stance."
Later on Tuesday, US senators voted 50-46 almost entirely along party lines to block debate on the 2027 NDAA over the illegal US-Israeli war of choice on Iran and proposed US-Israeli military integration.
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'Corruption, Plain and Simple': Trump Brags About Being Soft on Crypto Industry
"The Trump family has made over $5 BILLION in corrupt crypto deals," said Rep. Greg Casar. "Now Trump is openly bragging that his government won’t investigate cryptocurrency-related crimes."
Jul 06, 2026
President Donald Trump on Monday boasted about how lax his administration has been in pursuing investigations into the cryptocurrency industry.
Speaking at the White House, Trump attacked former President Joe Biden's administration for prosecuting cryptocurrency industry figures for a wide variety of crimes related to money laundering and fraud.
"They were very violently against [the crypto industry]," Trump said. "They were putting people in jail. What they were doing to the crypto world, it was horrible. It's amazing that it survived that onslaught, it was a weaponization of government."
Trump then explained how he drew support from the industry by coming out in favor of it during the 2024 presidential campaign, adding that "every time I see a crypto guy where they dropped an investigation, I said, 'You're lucky I'm president.'"
Trump: "Every time I see a crypto guy where they dropped an investigation, I said, 'You're lucky I'm president.'" pic.twitter.com/7Jgg0ffgq7
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) July 6, 2026
During his second term, Trump has not only taken a hands-off approach to the crypto industry, but also pardoned Changpeng Zhao, the founder of cryptocurrency exchange Binance, who pleaded guilty to money-laundering charges in 2023.
This pardon drew allegations of corruption given that Binance has been a major financial booster of World Liberty Financial, the crypto venture backed by the Trump family that has added billions of dollars to their total wealth.
Even as Trump has personally raked in money from selling his own memecoin, many of his supporters who invested in it have lost significant sums of money.
A Sunday report in The New York Times revealed that nearly 1 million people who invested in the Trump memecoin have recorded losses totaling $3.8 billion since its launch in 2025.
As the Times noted, "Trump profited whether the price of his memecoin went up or down" because he "collected returns whenever anyone traded the tokens, as he repeatedly pushed his followers to do, using his Truth Social account to promote the coin."
Rep. Greg Casar (D-Texas), chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, ripped the president for openly boasting about going easy on the industry that he's personally profiting from.
"The Trump family has made over $5 BILLION in corrupt crypto deals," Casar wrote in a social media post. "Now Trump is openly bragging that his government won’t investigate cryptocurrency-related crimes. Corruption, plain and simple."
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Progressive Caucus Leader Backs Amendment to Cut Off Billions in US Military Aid to Israel
"The Israeli government committed war crimes in Gaza and helped drag America into war with Iran," said Rep. Greg Casar. "Americans should not be financing more weapons for Netanyahu."
Jun 30, 2026
The chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus on Monday expressed support for an amendment that would cut off $3.3 billion in US military assistance to Israel, pointing to atrocities in Gaza and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's role in pushing the Trump administration to launch an illegal war against Iran.
"Soon, the House will vote on an amendment to block taxpayer funding to Israel’s military. I will vote yes," Rep. Greg Casar (D-Texas) wrote on social media. "The Israeli government committed war crimes in Gaza and helped drag America into war with Iran. Americans should not be financing more weapons for Netanyahu."
The amendment, led by Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.), is expected to get a floor vote as soon as this week as part of debate over an annual appropriations bill for national security and the US State Department. The amendment states that "none of the funds made available under this act shall be obligated or expended for Israel."
"The amount otherwise made available by this act for 'Foreign Military Financing Program' is hereby reduced by $3,300,000,000," the amendment adds. Under current law, Israel is set to receive $3.3 billion in annual Foreign Military Financing Program funding through 2028.
The looming vote on the amendment, which will force lawmakers on the record on continued US aid to Israel, has sparked an AIPAC lobbying campaign and significant consternation within the House Democratic caucus. During a virtual caucus call over the weekend, according to Punchbowl, "leadership-aligned Democrats panned the Massie amendment as sloppily drafted."
"Members of the center-left New Democrat Coalition, as well as Jewish lawmakers, said they were opposed," the outlet reported. "Several members alleged that Republicans allowed Massie’s amendment to reach the floor because they hoped to divide Democrats on such a contentious issue."
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) said Democratic lawmakers will meet in person on Tuesday to discuss the amendment.
"Congress continues to treat military funding for Israel as automatic, even as public support for unconditional aid collapses across the country."
Recent polling has found that Democratic voters overwhelmingly oppose continued US military support for Israel, which has used American weaponry to commit grave war crimes in the occupied Palestinian territories. A United Nations report published last week found that the Israeli military has deliberately targeted children in Gaza and "wiped out entire families across two or three or even four generations."
In his social media post on Monday, Casar acknowledged concerns voiced by some of his Democratic colleagues that the Massie amendment, as written, "may cut off both military weapons (~$3.3 billion) and some diplomatic funding (~$50 million)."
"While I would prefer to vote on an amendment that stripped just military funding," Casar wrote, "I think opposing the billions in military funding is what’s most important here."
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), who sits on the Congressional Progressive Caucus' executive board, told Drop Site on Monday that she would support Massie's amendment.
"In my community, in my district, the conclusion is pretty clear," said Ocasio-Cortez, who is leading a separate amendment to the 2027 National Defense Authorization Act that would bar the transfer of any US weaponry to other nations absent "congressional authorization and written presidential assurances that the recipient country is not restricting the transport or delivery of humanitarian assistance and is complying with international law."
🔸Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) tells Drop Site she will vote for Rep. Thomas Massie’s amendment to the FY2027 State Department appropriations bill that would prohibit funds under the bill from being spent on Israel and eliminate the $3.3 billion Foreign Military Financing… https://t.co/kpfeYYPJ55 pic.twitter.com/WHSkJKV8DT
— Drop Site (@DropSiteNews) June 30, 2026
Urging House lawmakers to vote yes, the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee said the Massie amendment provides an opportunity for "a rare recorded vote on whether members of Congress will continue sending billions of US taxpayer dollars to the Israeli military, or finally begin ending America’s role in funding Israel’s genocides in Palestine and Lebanon, and endless aggressions in Yemen, Syria, Iran, and beyond."
"For years, Americans have watched US weapons, US tax dollars, and US diplomatic cover enable Israel’s atrocities against Palestinians, its attacks on neighboring countries, and its efforts to drag the United States into Israel’s forever wars," the group said. "Yet Congress continues to treat military funding for Israel as automatic, even as public support for unconditional aid collapses across the country."
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'Vote for Cruelty and Corruption': House Republicans Approve $70 Billion in New Funding for ICE and DHS
“Congressional Republicans gifting ICE with billions of extra dollars of funding while Americans are struggling to make ends meet is an outrage," said one critic of the Trump-backed move.
Jun 09, 2026
The Republican-controlled House of Representatives on Tuesday narrowly approved nearly $70 billion in new funding for US Department of Homeland Security agencies responsible for the Trump administration's anti-immigrant crackdown, a move denounced by Democrats and advocacy groups.
The Secure America Act—a budget reconciliation bill approved last week by the Senate, where it was introduced by Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC)—passed the House by a vote of 214-212. Every Republican present voted for the bill, while every Democrat in the chamber and Independent Rep. Kevin Kiley of California voted against it.
The legislation provides funding for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) through the end of President Donald Trump's term. The bill now heads to Trump's desk for his signature.
"In the final months of their House majority, House Republicans are doubling down on their failed approach: blank checks for ICE and not one cent to make things cheaper for working families," Congressional Progressive Caucus Chair Greg Casar (D-Texas) said following Tuesday's vote.
"The day after threatening to cut Social Security and Medicare, they are sending billions to Trump’s mass deportation machine—which still has $100 billion sitting in the bank," he added. "The Republican Congress is a disaster for working Americans. When Democrats take back power, we must repeal this funding.”
Rep. Maxwell Frost (D-Fla.) said on X: "The House GOP just voted to give ICE and CBP $70 BILLION. Instead of investing in you and ensuring you can afford your healthcare, groceries, or rent—they chose to hand $70 BILLION to agencies operating without any guardrails while terrorizing and brutalizing our communities."
Civil society groups also blasted House Republicans after the vote.
“Congressional Republicans gifting ICE with billions of extra dollars of funding while Americans are struggling to make ends meet is an outrage," said Lisa Gilbert, co-president of the consumer advocacy group Public Citizen, which decried what it called "a vote for cruelty and corruption."
“Trump’s ICE has proven that it is dangerous and out of control," Gilbert added. "Today’s vote is... a vote against the Constitution and the safety of our communities and neighbors. Shame on congressional Republicans for ramrodding through this egregious funding.”
FWD.us President Todd Schulte said, "At a time when voters remain rightly outraged at ICE, providing hundreds of billions of dollars to ICE and CBP to terrorize communities and tear families apart while the cost of living rises and healthcare funding is slashed is both a stunning policy failure, and incredibly unpopular with voters."
ACLU senior policy counsel Kate Voigt said in a statement that "it is unconscionable that the House would vote to write yet another blank check for ICE and Border Patrol’s campaign of chaos without any reforms. Over the past several months we’ve seen these abusive agencies kill our neighbors, harass and racially profile people, and tear thousands of families apart."
More than 50 people have died in DHS custody since Trump returned to office, with experts asserting that many of the deaths were preventable. Detained immigrants have reported beatings and sexual abuse, medical neglect, hunger and inedible food, and denial of access to attorneys, and other mistreatment.
DHS officers have killed Americans Renee Good and Alex Pretti and Mexican national Silverio Villegas González, and have wounded numerous other people during Trump's second term.
ICE detainees across the nation are resisting abuse in detention centers across the nation through hunger strikes and other civil disobedience, as well as via lawsuits.
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