(Picture credit Matt Johnson)
As the 2026 mid-term elections approach, there’s growing concern among America’s large Democratic-leaning Jewish population that anti-Semitism is growing in the political party they have called home for decades. Nothing like that has appeared in Nebraska, but there are signs that rather than confront the trend among progressive voters, Nebraska’s Independent Senate candidate Dan Osborn is staying on the right side of it, backing away from his 2024 support for Israel.
An unnamed Osborn spokesperson said that is not true. “Everything Dan does is people first and based on fighting for all Nebraskans. He stands strongly against antisemitism, and he will do everything in his power as U.S. Senator to fight against antisemitism.”
The facts are more complicated. While during his 2024 campaign, Osborn called Israel’s actions in Gaza “justified,” this year, Osborn‘s website calls Israel’s actions in Gaza “aggression,” while in a previous email exchange a spokesman told The Plains Sentinel that Osborn believes the American ally “broke the laws of war.”
In a town hall earlier this year, Osborn stopped just short of saying Israel is committing genocide.
“I’m not an expert on what a genocide is. I see the pictures coming out of Gaza, and there’s nothing left. And they don’t let the press in there. They don’t let humanitarian aid in. They’re starving people to death. This is a human tragedy, and we should not be complicit in it.”
On Tuesday, when Osborn was endorsed by a national security group opposed to war with Iran, he said nothing about the fact that it was the day before the 3rd anniversary of Iranian-funded Hamas attacks on Israel that killed more than 1200 people, the largest terror attack since 9/11. He did address the Iran conflict in which Israel has been a participant.
“When it comes to foreign policy and American military involvement abroad, he believes we must use force in a way that is limited to the necessary scope and minimizes civilian casualties in conflict. We have a duty to hold our allies to that standard, too,” Osborn’s spokesman told The Plains Sentinel. “Our relationship with our allies should be mutually beneficial and help our interests, and Netanyahu has done anything but that. We should demand better.”
The next day, when asked about the anniversary on Twitter, he did not reply. In 2024, Osborn told a Nebraska TV station that, “The attacks on October 7 were evil and horrible to watch. And I don’t think anyone can blame Israel for defending itself.”
This week, Republican Senator Pete Ricketts made a statement that reflects something closer to Osborn’s views in 2024, writing on Twitter, “On October 7, Hamas terrorists carried out the deadliest attack against the Jewish people since the Holocaust. Three years later, we remember the innocent lives taken and stand with their families and the people of Israel. Hamas was enabled by years of Iranian funding, weapons, and training. America must confront terrorism and its sponsors with strength, not appeasement.”
This spring, Osborn was endorsed by an Arab-American-funded anti-Israel PAC, called A New Policy PAC, which has called the conflict in Gaza a “U.S.-driven, armed & funded genocide.” When a Jewish publication raised concerns with Osborn, he said, “I will always stand against anti-Semitism.”
The PAC, which has donated to Osborn’s campaign, was founded by political appointees of President Joe Biden who resigned from the administration in protest of Israel’s actions in Gaza.
The group has backed Rep. Rashida Tlaib, Rep. Ilhan Omar, and Abdul El-Sayed, who is running for Senate in Michigan. All three have accused Israel of committing genocide.
In May, Osborn said he would not take money from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, a Jewish lobby active in promoting the U.S.-Israel alliance. “They’re starving people to death,” Osborn said at the time.
— David Mastio is a Papillion resident and a former National Columnist for The Kansas City Star and Deputy Editorial Page Editor of USA TODAY.