Former Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan used the first major policy address of his Senate campaign to excoriate Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) over his waning support for Israel.
Hogan, a Republican who served two terms as governor of deep blue Maryland, launched a surprise bid for retiring Sen. Ben Cardin’s (D-MD) seat early last month. His entry into the race makes the contest highly competitive for the GOP as the party works to retake control of the Senate in November.
Speaking from Beth Sholom Congregation on Friday in Potomac, Maryland, Hogan accused Van Hollen of not being an ally to Maryland’s Jewish community while vowing to follow Cardin’s footsteps as a friend of Israel.
“I’ve always had a great deal of respect for Sen. Ben Cardin, and I want to take a moment to recognize and thank him for his many years of service. We may not have always agreed on every issue, but we always worked together across the aisle as Team Maryland,” Hogan said. “He should be commended for his consistent and strong support for Israel in the face of pressure from the loudest and angriest voices.”
“If I have the honor of becoming your next senator, that is exactly the kind of leadership that you will continue to see from me,” he continued.
Hogan then turned his attention to Van Hollen, who would become his home state colleague should he win.
“Sadly, this type of leadership has become far too rare. It’s not what you’re getting from Maryland’s junior senator, who has become one of the most hostile voices against Israel in the entire United States Senate,” he said of Van Hollen. “Just this week, he signed an outrageous letter urging President Biden to cut off aid to Israel.”
Van Hollen was one of eight Democratic senators who sent a letter to President Joe Biden on Monday urging him to stop sending U.S. military aid to Israel until the country allows more humanitarian aid shipments to be let into Gaza. The group accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of prosecuting Israel’s war in violation of Section 620I of the Foreign Assistance Act, which prohibits the blocking of humanitarian assistance corridors.
“We urge you to make it clear to the Netanyahu government that failure to immediately and dramatically expand humanitarian access and facilitate safe aid deliveries throughout Gaza will lead to serious consequences, as specified under existing U.S. law,” the senators wrote.
Hogan doubled down when pressed about Van Hollen’s letter after the address.
“It’s not shocking. I mean, he’s never been a big supporter of Israel or the Jewish community in Maryland, which is very large, but for him to come out and be openly one of the most hostile people in the entire United States Senate,” he told the Washington Examiner. “There are only seven of them that signed on to this letter, Bernie Sanders and he and a group. I don’t understand where it’s coming from. I think it’s basically they’re getting pressured from the far-left base that is getting them to switch their position.”
Despite their differences, Hogan expressed optimism when asked if he and Van Hollen would be able to work together.
“I hope so. I mean, we worked together for the eight years I was governor. I worked with all of them,” he said. “I was the only Republican in the state. I worked with everybody in the legislature and everybody in Congress. Van Hollen was just glad I didn’t run against him two years ago.”
Instead of facing Van Hollen on the general election ballot in November, Hogan will be up against either Rep. David Trone (D-MD) or Prince George’s County Executive Angela Alsobrooks.
The Oct. 7 massacre and Israel’s military offensive have highlighted internal divisions within the Democratic Party. Hard-left Democrats have vocally opposed Israel’s response to the attack, which marked the largest massacre of Jews since the Holocaust, while most in the party have emphasized Israel’s right to defend itself even as a growing number call for restraint.
Support for the war has waned on the Democratic side of the aisle in recent weeks, the result of the high death toll of Palestinians and Netanyahu’s refusal to bow to U.S. demands to allow more aid into Gaza amid warnings of mass starvation and disease outbreaks. Adding to the Democratic anger is the looming Rafah invasion, which Netanyahu said he would conduct regardless of Biden’s statements condemning such a move.
For his part, Netanyahu has blamed Hamas for the flow of humanitarian aid into Gaza, pushing back on U.S. criticisms after Biden ordered the aid to be airdropped into the devastated region earlier this month.
In a statement to the Washington Examiner, Van Hollen said, “Since October 7th, I have repeatedly and unreservedly spoken out about the horrors of the Hamas terrorist attacks. Like President Biden, I fully support the right of Israel to defend itself and eliminate the military threat of Hamas — there must be no more October sevenths — and I have continuously prioritized and pressed for the immediate release of all hostages. I voted for National Security Act which provides aid to Ukraine as well as additional assistance to Israel for the Iron Dome and other defenses and humanitarian aid to Gaza. I also believe that a just war must be fought justly. That is why I have continued to express my deep concerns about the actions taken by the Netanyahu government in the face of the humanitarian crisis in Gaza. I don’t think most Marylanders support a position of giving a blank check to Netanyahu’s policies.”
Regarding the letter to Biden, Van Hollen added, “U.S. law requires that we do not provide offensive weapons to governments that restrict the delivery of U.S. humanitarian assistance. I have made clear that I continue to support providing Israel with defensive weapons — including supporting the Iron Dome — but as required by the Humanitarian Aid Corridor Act, we should suspend the delivery of bombs and offensive weapons for use in Gaza, unless the Netanyahu Government lifts the current restrictions and allows the delivery of aid to starving people in Gaza.”
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Hogan, a leading Republican critic of former President Donald Trump and the populist wing of the GOP, said he would not support the nominee of his party in November. He also revealed that the Republican revolt against the bipartisan Senate bill that would have provided aid to Ukraine, Israel, Taiwan, and the U.S. southern border last month was what prompted him to launch his Senate bid.
“A couple of weeks ago, we saw a bipartisan package to secure the southern border and to support Israel and Ukraine and other key American allies fail because people were told to vote against a critical bill that they claimed to be for,” Hogan said. “It made me frustrated, and I knew I had to step up and try to do something about it. That was the moment when I decided to run for the United States Senate.”
