But What Can You Do? tracks where 2026 candidates stand on U.S. weapons and funding for the government of Israel. How we check

Michaela Barnett

Democrat · U.S. House, Tennessee District 2
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How this mark works

We track key votes on sending U.S. weapons and money to the government of Israel. A check means every tracked vote they cast came down against sending more, on the side of peace and de-escalation. A question mark means a mixed record: they sided with sending up to half of the time. An X means they voted to send more weapons and money in over half of their tracked votes, even as the way those weapons and dollars were being used became more and more obvious. At exactly half, money this election cycle from a lobbying group we track, or an endorsement from a group that backs sending weapons, makes it an X. Only votes actually cast are counted. Where a candidate has no recorded votes on these bills, the mark comes instead from a reviewed reading of their public record (money from the lobbying groups we track, endorsements, and their own words since January 26, 2024). There an X also covers fully backing the conduct of the war by the government of Israel without significant reservations, and a question mark also covers speaking about Israel without saying clearly where they stand on U.S. weapons and funding. A dash means No Position Found: we found nothing in their own words about Israel, Gaza or the war.

See a dash? Ask the candidate where they stand, then send us their answer and we'll review it and update the mark. Or volunteer to help review candidates.

No recorded votes on the bills we track. We found nothing in their own words about Israel, Gaza or the war.

Barnett has not spoken publicly on U.S. weapons or money for the government of Israel, or on U.S. aid to Palestinians. No statement was found in source-checked research across 5 sources.

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Deep Dive

5 sources checked and resolved, every one listed on the research page. Most candidates at this level have simply never been asked.

You are better placed to change that than we are. Ask Barnett directly, or at a candidate forum, and send us the reply: it goes on this page in their own words, which is worth more than anything we could write about them.

The money

Checked the five lobbying groups we track; no direct 2026 support found

2026 support from the five lobbying groups we track
Nothing recorded (as of 2026-07-23) from the five lobbying groups we track; earlier cycles and earmarked donations not yet tracked.
Support-only OpenFEC data. Opposition independent expenditures are excluded.

Research log

The notes behind this card: what we looked at, what we found, and where each item came from.

What was looked for, and what came back

  • **U.S. military aid and weapons to Israel:** There are no recorded public statements or actions by Michaela Barnett regarding U.S. military aid or weapons transfers to Israel.
  • **Characterization of the conflict:** Material returned; set out in full below.
  • **Rhetoric and lobbying:** There are no recorded public statements or actions by Michaela Barnett concerning Israel-related political rhetoric, political action committees, or lobbying.
  • **Safety and antisemitism:** There are no recorded public statements or actions by Michaela Barnett specifically addressing antisemitism or safety considerations related to the Jewish community.

What else came back

The card's claim is about what the United States sends, and no position was found there. These sections returned material beyond a bare verdict. It is reproduced word for word so nothing found is lost; none of it is a position on U.S. weapons or money. Em dashes are rendered as hyphens to satisfy house style; no wording is changed.

### Characterization of the conflict * On **May 24, 2021**, in a co-authored article for *Behavioral Scientist*, Barnett briefly noted that "the whole world observes the violence between Israel and Palestine" while discussing academic research on moral cognition, religion, and attitudes toward violence. * On **August 6, 2026**, Barnett appeared as a guest on the podcast *Being Different with Liz Durham*, where the discussion covered a range of divisive political topics, including Gaza, though her official campaign platform does not include formal detailed statements or positions characterizing the conflict.

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Sources consulted and resolved (5)

Not found

  • No position located on U.S. weapons, arms sales or military funding for the government of Israel.
  • No position located on U.S. aid to Palestinians, UNRWA or Gaza humanitarian funding.
  • This is a record of what was checked on 2026-08-11, not a claim that no statement exists anywhere.

Also in this race

  1. ✗ Tim Burchett (Republican)
  2. – Adam Heimerman (Independent)
  3. – Bruce Fine (Independent)

All Tennessee candidates.

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 Find Your Candidates for votes, funding and contact details.