The White House and administration officials are lobbying senators to vote against the resolutions. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) has also privately pressed senators to ensure Israel continues to receive military equipment, according to an aide familiar with the situation.

“We strongly oppose this resolution and we have made our position clear to interested senators,” a National Security Council spokesperson said.

Two resolutions co-sponsored by Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), and Peter Welch (D-VT) would block the sale of 120-millimeter mortar rounds and joint direct attack munitions. Sen. Brian Schatz (D-HI) sponsored a third that would block the sale of tank rounds.

The three resolutions are likely to fail but are a show of force by the Democratic Party’s left flank as divisions over U.S. support of Israel’s retaliatory offensive over the last 13 months have been simmering.

The White House has also circulated a memo to Democratic Senate offices on Capitol Hill on Tuesday, stressing that lawmakers who vote for the resolution are putting “wind in the sails of Iran, Hezbollah, and Hamas” according to reporting from Huffpost.

“Now is the time to focus pressure on Hamas to release the hostages and stop the war,” the document reads. “Cutting off arms from Israel would put this goal even further out of reach and prolong the war, not shorten it.”

Sanders, an independent who caucuses with Democrats, said he thought it was time to bring the resolutions to the floor, citing what he called Israel’s violation of international law to adequately provide aid amid the war against Hamas.

In October, the Biden administration called on Israel to improve the flow of aid to Gaza in 30 days or risk military aid being withheld. After that time, the United States concluded that Israel was making progress and did not impede assistance.

Sanders and other Democratic senators have expressed concerns about the growing number of civilian casualties in Gaza. The war has led to the deaths of over 43,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which is run by Hamas and does not distinguish militants from civilians.

.@BernieSanders with @SenJeffMerkley @SenPeterWelch @ChrisVanHollen are holding a press conference about their plan to bring several joint Resolutions of Disapproval to block certain offensive weapons sales to Israel. @dcexaminer pic.twitter.com/IUwhCLjEiV

— Samantha-Jo Roth (@SamanthaJoRoth) November 19, 2024

“Clearly, what is happening in Gaza today is unspeakable, but what makes it even more painful is that much of what is happening there has been done with U.S. weapons and with American taxpayer support,” Sanders said during a press conference Tuesday.

Other Senate Democrats are coming out strongly against the resolutions. Sen. Ben Cardin (D-MD), the chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee, reiterated U.S. support for Israel “does not diminish our commitment to humanitarian assistance for innocent Palestinians or our shared pursuit of peace.”

“While addressing the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and advocating for peace, we also must uphold our country’s longstanding bipartisan commitment to Israel,” Cardin wrote. “We must make it unequivocally clear that the United States stands with Israel against these shared threats and ensure it has the resources to defend itself.”

Senate Republicans are unified and are preparing to reject the resolutions in an effort to send a strong message to Israel’s adversaries.

“While Israel is being attacked on all fronts, it should not be under attack in the halls of Congress,” Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA) said in a statement. “After four years of the Biden White House, we must stand with our greatest ally in the Middle East. After all, Israel’s enemies are our enemies, and Iran and its proxies have American blood on their hands.

“Instead of blocking critical weapons as Israel fights for its own existence, we must provide them with the tools needed to demolish Iran-backed Hamas and send a clear message back to Tehran,” she added.