The Congressman that was the saddest about the passing of Senator Lindsey Graham was probably Representative Ro Khanna of California.

Why? Because Ro Khanna had planned on making a huge splash with a contrived story about being held against his will in Israel, and therefore would have a great tale of woe in order to push his profile into the national eye. But then Senator Graham died, and the air went out of Khanna’s story. By the time he got any attention, his story of an armed standoff with Israeli “settlers” had fallen apart, DESPITE having a New York Times photographer along with him, which meant he got a puff piece written about how stunning and brave he is.

On Wednesday afternoon, Mr. Khanna, the congressman from Silicon Valley who is exploring a 2028 presidential run, was visiting the ruins of Khirbet Zanuta, a tiny Palestinian Bedouin village in the southern West Bank that was abandoned after escalating attacks from settlers and then demolished.

Suddenly, a car of men holding guns pulled up and blocked the narrow road out of the village. The men began taunting the congressman and his team, swearing at them in Hebrew and Arabic and kicking the tires of their minibus, according to accounts, photographs and video footage from Mr. Khanna, an aide and his security guard. A photographer for The New York Times traveling in a different vehicle also saw the interaction. Soon, a Jeep with more men arrived.

When two cars from the Israeli military pulled up, Mr. Khanna assumed the soldiers were there to help him pass. Instead, the soldiers smoked cigarettes, chatted with the men and after the settlers left, moved a car to block the road, he recounted.

“I felt powerless in that situation, which is not an easy thing, as I have a lot of privilege in life,” said Mr. Khanna, who was eventually allowed to continue his journey after calls to the U.S. embassy and Israeli police. “Imagine how people feel every day, Palestinians under the occupation, if they could make an American congressperson feel powerless for 90 minutes.”

And there it is. Ro Khanna is trying to run for president, and is using this new anti-Israel sentiment that has seeped its way through the Democrat Party to be a “pick me,” as the kids say. Never mind that Khanna didn’t inform the U.S. Embassy that he was going, and never mind that he was riding along with a Palestinian activist group who arranged this trip. Khanna tried to pull the “don’t you know who I am?” card and even referred to himself as a “long-shot presidential candidate.”

“Free advice to the Israelis: It’s not a good idea to detain long-shot presidential candidates,” @RoKhanna said. “Not how you’re going to build good will with the next American president, whoever that is.” https://t.co/DNoglFZSWF

— Kenneth P. Vogel (@kenvogel) July 11, 2026

And despite the focus on Graham’s passing, he’s been super busy making sure everyone with a camera hears his story – no matter how it changes over time.

But then Khanna got tripped up. He thought he was doing GREAT with the anti-Israel crowd, but then got smacked for not hating Israel enough by some real crazies who asked him if October 7th was justified.

Khanna sat down with Jeremy Scahill, Ryan Grim and Maysa Mustafa of Drop Site News, the “independent” far-left outlet funded by the Soros family, on Tuesday.

The quartet were mere seconds into their conversation when Scahill blew up Khanna’s entire worldview and 2028 campaign thesis.

After thanking Khanna for promoting the popular “apartheid” and “genocide” blood libels against Israel, the professional propagandist quickly turned hostile over Khanna’s failure to prevent it from using Iron Dome missile-defense technology.

“A lot of the critique of you from pro-Palestine people, and from Palestinians, is that the position you’re advocating basically amounts to, ‘We need to make sure that the sniper is protected so that he can continue sniping,’ ” mused Scahill.

Bear in mind: Khanna already opposes American funding of Iron Dome, he just hasn’t done enough, to Scahill’s mind, to leave innocent Israelis defenseless.

It only got more unhinged from there.

“Israeli civilians are dying in these attacks because of the apartheid,” Scahill asserted before asking, “Do Palestinians have a right to kill Israeli soldiers, Congressman? On Oct. 7, when they attacked the military bases in the Gaza envelope, did the Qassam Brigades and Saraya Al-Quds have a right to kill Israeli soldiers, yes or no?”

The obvious implication being: the answer should be “yes.”

A visibly taken-aback Khanna managed only a stammer before an indignant Scahill interjected to repeat his question.

After finally gathering himself, Khanna replied, “I mean, I think [the] Oct. 7 attack was a terrorist attack. So I don’t justify . . .”

Scahill didn’t let him finish his thought, opting instead to whitewash the events of the deadliest day for Jews since the Holocaust by pretending that the barbarians responsible had their sights set on “military” targets.

It took @RoKhanna less than 24 hours to get totally out-flanked out by the pro-terrorist looney tunes taking over the Democrat Party.

You lie with dogs, you get up with fleas. https://t.co/XidueEc6da

— Sarah Steele (@sarahsteelex) July 14, 2026

But Ro Khanna is committed to the bit now. His “pick me” needs are simply too great to be ignored. So if that means voting against “defensive weapons for Israel,” then Khanna is ALL IN.

"defensive weapons like the Iron Dome" – this man is a monster https://t.co/OXxVSn67Hm

— William A. Jacobson (@wajacobson) July 15, 2026

Thomas Massie, who is on his way out of the House and just wants to grandstand before he goes, watched his amendment fail. The problem is that 103 Democrats in the House voted FOR it. And when more of those “democratic socialists” get to Congress, that number will grow.

The vote was on a largely symbolic amendment introduced by Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Kentucky) to an appropriations package for the State Department and other national security agencies.

Despite the considerable Democratic support, the amendment failed in the House. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-New York) voted against it. Massie was the only Republican to vote for the amendment. Ten Democrats voted present.

Still, the large support for the amendment comes amid a sharp shift among Democratic voters on Israel. A number of Democrats who have voiced support for Israel voted for the amendment, including former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-California) and Katherine Clark (D-Massachusetts), the minority whip.

Progressive candidates have cast the divide as evidence that the Democratic establishment is misaligned with its own voters — not only on the war in Gaza, but also on money in politics and the use of U.S. tax dollars abroad.

“The Democratic Party has been out of step with its own base on Gaza and Palestinian human rights for years. People in this country can’t afford rent, groceries, or a doctor’s visit — and instead of fighting for them, our politicians are sending billions to fund a genocide,” said Darializa Avila Chevalier, a democratic socialist candidate who won a competitive New York primary last month.

Even after this vote, Ro Khanna is still waving his “pick me” flag.

This dude is referring to Jamaal Bowman and Cori Bush as “martyrs” because they got beat in their primaries.

Just insane levels of pandering https://t.co/twoE7LFdpM

— Chuck Ross (@ChuckRossDC) July 15, 2026

Khanna is trying to make a name for himself among the far left, in hopes of being their leader. The only thing that he’s accomplished so far is looking completely desperate for attention.

Featured image: Representative Ro Khanna, official Congressional portrait, cropped, public domain