Jasmine Crockett wants voters to know this about her position on Israel and Gaza

“I believe in a real democracy, so I believe that it is perfectly acceptable for people to disagree with me,” U.S. Congresswoman Crockett tells theGrio.

U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett has faced tough criticisms from pro-Palestinian progressives for her voting record related to aid for Israel, which has faced international condemnation and accusations of genocide for its deadly military actions in Gaza, which have killed more than 70,000 Palestinians.

During an interview with theGrio, the Texas congresswoman and Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate defended her record and condemned what she described as a “clear, concerted effort to distort” her position on Israel.

“I believe in a real democracy, so I believe that it is perfectly acceptable for people to disagree with me,” said Crockett, who argued that her position is not distinct from her primary opponent, Democratic Texas State Rep. James Talarico, only that he doesn’t have a voting record to stand on.

“It is very easy when someone is inexperienced and hasn’t been on the federal level, such as my opponent, to say, I’m not gonna do this or that. But when it gets down to it, when you get a vote, you have to decide, like, where you stand, and there are people that may disagree,” Crockett explained.

Though she has faced some of the same heat over Gaza that data shows plagued the 2024 presidential campaign of Kamala Harris, the U.S. congresswoman did not back away from her record, telling theGrio, “There are those that believe that Israel should be disarmed of any defensive arms, which basically boils down to Iron Dome. I have never stood out against Iron Dome, and the funding that we have signed onto, in any of the aid [packages] was for defensive arms.”

Crockett also pointed to a letter she and other Democrats signed onto that was sent to then-President Joe Biden, urging him to withhold certain offensive weaponry or other military support for Israel in the military operation against Hamas in Gaza.

“We felt like there were violations of international law, and therefore, we encouraged the president to make sure that we are following our own law,” she explained.

As for her votes for U.S. spending on Israel’s defense, Crockett argued that they were part of an omnibus—a package of unrelated bills. One of those omnibus bills that Crockett voted for, H.R. 7006, got pro-Palestinians “really upset,” the Texas lawmaker admits.

“That particular vote was for 2 of our 12 appropriations, so that we could keep the government open,” explained the U.S. Senate candidate, who said she voted for the funding package to protect federal workers and provide funding for other critical federal resources.

“There [were] two whole divisions of federal workers in this terrible economic environment, that if I would have voted no, those two groups of federal workers, they would be in a shutdown, and they wouldn’t be getting any money,” said Crockett.

She continued, “There was funding for public defenders, there was funding for HIV dollars, there was funding for small businesses. There was funding to make sure that we stay a part of the [United Nations] so that hopefully we can protect ourselves domestically…96% of the dollars were going for something other than Israel.”

Crockett reiterated that she invites criticism of her votes in the U.S. House of Representatives, telling theGrio, “There are people that may disagree. They may say, you know what? You should have said, forget it to all of the federal workers, you should have said, forget it to all of those other dollars, you should have said, forget it, because Israel was included in it.”

She added, “That’s fine if that’s where you stand. I just don’t want people distorting what it is that I did. That’s it.”

Despite a ceasefire in Gaza between Israel and Hamas initially secured by the Trump administration in October 2025, Israel has executed several strikes in Gaza, resulting in more deaths of Palestinians. Both sides have accused the other of violating the peace deal. However, negotiations to restore the ceasefire continue.

On Wednesday, President Donald Trump met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House to discuss Gaza and a nuclear deal in Iran.

A White House spokesperson, Anna Kelly, said, “We continue to work closely with our ally Israel to implement President Trump’s historic Gaza peace agreement and to strengthen regional security in the Middle East.”