Pete Ricketts
Ricketts wants U.S. support for the government of Israel unconditioned: the administration's warning about weapons-transfer conditions was "appeasement-first", and "the U.S. should be offering unconditional support to Israel in their fight to end Hamas and Hezbollah's brutality." He authored a bill to permanently end U.S. funding of UNRWA.
Ricketts, Nebraska's junior senator and a Foreign Relations Committee member, is running for a full term. His nine tracked-vote badges all point one way: against every resolution that would have blocked arms sales to the government of Israel. He has said why, repeatedly and in his own releases.
In October 2024 he condemned the administration's letter warning of conditions on weapons transfers: "appeasement-first foreign policy is undermining Israel and emboldening Iran and its terrorist proxies. The U.S. should be offering unconditional support to Israel in their fight to end Hamas and Hezbollah's brutality. Anything less than that pushes peace further out of reach."
On U.S. money to Palestinians his position is specific: his Stop Support for Hamas Act would permanently end U.S. funding for UNRWA, and his February 2024 column called the agency "effectively a branch of Hamas." Cutting money to the UN's Palestinian-refugee agency is a position on aid to Palestinians, and this card names it as such. In September 2025, rejecting a UN report that called Israel's Gaza actions genocide, he called the UN "a grossly anti-semitic organization." In March 2025 the Democratic Majority for Israel criticized him from the other direction, after he said peace requires "both sides at the table"; the group insisted Hamas can have no role. As governor he opposed the boycott movement and adopted the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance definition of antisemitism for Nebraska in 2022.
Tracked votes: backed sending U.S. weapons or funding to the government of Israel in 9 of 9 recorded votes.
Research
U.S. military aid and weapons to Israel
- [Position, 2024-10-16] Statement, read and verified verbatim (read at the exact URL; a paraphrased URL does not exist): "appeasement-first foreign policy is undermining Israel and emboldening Iran and its terrorist proxies. The U.S. should be offering unconditional support to Israel in their fight to end Hamas and Hezbollah's brutality. Anything less than that pushes peace further out of reach."
- [Reaction window, 2023-11-25] Statement rejecting conditions talk; "anti-Israel propagandists" framing. Off the card; an existing record quote carries it.
- His nine tracked Nay votes on the arms-sale disapproval resolutions (2024-11-20 through 2025-07-30) are badges; characterized on the card because he has spoken about the policy repeatedly (the 2024-06-21 existing record quote is another instance).
U.S. aid to Palestinians
- [Position, 2024-02-02] Weekly column: UNRWA is "effectively a branch of Hamas," citing staff-involvement allegations; no taxpayer funding. The existing record quote "UNRWA shouldn't receive a cent of American taxpayer dollars" (2023-11-01) is the same position stated earlier, inside the reaction window.
- [Reaction window, 2023-12-06] Introduced the Stop Support for Hamas Act to permanently end UNRWA funding (BillTrack50). The introduction date falls inside the reaction window, so the act is research-page history; his February 2024 column above carries the same position on the card.
Characterization of the conflict
- [Reaction window, 2023-12-06] Floor: "we must stand with Israel until Hamas is destroyed utterly"; "humanity will have been done a favor by the state of Israel when Hamas is destroyed" (floor release). Off the card.
- [Reaction window, 2024-01-30] Ricketts Replies video: "Hamas is responsible for everybody who died on October 7th and everybody who has died since then because they started this war" (release). Off the card.
- [Position, 2025-09-23, reported] Rejecting the UN Human Rights Council genocide report: the UN is "a grossly anti-semitic organization" (no distinct resolved source ; the deep dive attributes the occasion).
- [Position, 2025-03-07] DMFI criticized his remark that "to get to peace [in the Middle East], you have to have both sides at the table"; the group said Hamas must have no post-war role. Carried because it is the one recorded instance of him being pressured from the pro-Israel direction.
Related rhetoric and lobbying
- [Prior, pre-2023] As governor, declared opposition to the boycott, divestment, and sanctions movement (AJCongress guide).
- [Position, 2024-10-07] Co-sponsored the anniversary resolution condemning Iran-backed Hamas (his release). Multi-sponsor; nothing individual attributed.
- AIPAC support $14,493 this cycle and RJC $5,000 lifetime are badges; not restated.
Safety and antisemitism (context)
- [Prior, 2022-05-05] As governor, proclaimed Jewish American Heritage Month and adopted the IHRA definition for Nebraska by proclamation (as reported).
- [Reaction window, 2023-11-16] Co-sponsored the federal Antisemitism Awareness Act. Off the card; multi-sponsor.
- [Reaction window, 2024-01-30] "There is no room for anti-Semitism or any sort of hate" (Ricketts Replies). Off the card.
Also in this race: Mike Marvin (Other), Dan Osborn (Independent) · All Nebraska candidates.
See the full record →But What Can You Do? tracks where 2026 candidates stand on U.S. weapons and funding for the government of Israel. Every claim on this page goes through at least two verification steps. Open the interactive card for votes, funding and contact details.