Vivek Ramaswamy Answers The Great Big US Aid to Israel Question | WATCH
At a TPUSA event, Ohio gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy called the obsession with Israel aid "bizarre," defending his plan to sunset the $3.8B annual package while blasting "anti-Semitic instincts" from critics.
At a Turning Point USA event on April 22, 2026, the Republican candidate for Ohio governor Vivek Ramaswamy was asked yet again about Israel aid and he gave a characteristically blunt answer.
Vivek said he still believes the United States should phase out the annual $3.8 billion in military aid to Israel, calling it the right move for America first. He pointed out that he was one of the only candidates on the 2024 debate stage willing to say it publicly.
“I think it was in the best interests of the United States, and for what it’s worth, in the best interests of Israel, to say that $3.8 billion a year should be sunset,” he said.
He went further, calling the nonstop obsession with Israel aid “beyond bizarre,” especially when America sends money to dozens of other countries and has plenty of its own problems at home.
At the same time, Vivek pushed back hard against critics who fixate on Israel, saying some of that laser focus comes from “anti-Semitic instincts” that treat Israel or Jewish Americans as the root of America’s issues.
He made clear he still sees Israel as a strong ally and supports expanding the Abraham Accords, but believes long-term dependence on U.S. cash isn’t healthy for either country.
Vivek remains consistent — pro-Israel as a partner, but anti-endless-foreign-aid, even when that aid goes to America’s closest allies. Whether that stance helps or hurts him in a Republican primary will be one of the interesting storylines to watch.