MESSAGE
| DATE | 2024-07-01 |
| FROM | Aviva
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| SUBJECT | Subject: [Hangout - NYLXS] Blacks Versus Jews - the open wound
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Progressives unleash fury on AIPAC after Bowman loss
Progressives are venting loudly about the American Israel Public Affairs
Committee (AIPAC) after Rep. Jamaal Bowman’s (D-N.Y.) loss chipped away
at the “squad’s” ranks.
AIPAC was one of the greatest forces
working against Bowman, playing big by pouring millions into a
successful long game to elect Westchester County Executive George
Latimer in Tuesday’s primary.
In and out of Congress, progressives see the group
as overly intrusive and increasingly damaging, arguing it is promoting
an undemocratic way to win elections centered on money.
“I think we need to have a real conversation about the AIPAC,” Rep.
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) told reporters after Bowman’s defeat.
Within the House chamber, progressive lawmakers unleashed their
frustration as Democrats in both wings of the party sought to make sense
of Tuesday’s results.
Some called out AIPAC by name, tracing parts of its funding to ultrarich
Republicans, while others gave a more esoteric analysis of the broader
problems with outside spending.
“What we do need to have a real conversation about is how a Republican —
primarily Republican and largely Republican-financed — organization is
playing and dumping money and playing an extremely divisive role in the
Democratic Party,” added Ocasio-Cortez, who easily won her primary the
same night.
The influential group has caused fierce debate among Democrats assessing
special interest involvement this cycle. Centrist Democrats have been
some of AIPAC’s biggest allies, built around the belief that their
funding helps candidates who show loyalty to Israel after Hamas attacked
it on Oct. 7. Others, largely in the more left-wing parts of the
progressive coalition, worry such groups are creating a damaging
precedent for outside spending of all kinds.
The GOP-linked donor approach, they say, could backfire. And some of
those interests could work against the Democratic Party’s agenda.
“It may be right now, AIPAC and Democratic Majority for Israel and
crypto money, they’re really the only groups that are in primaries, but
if they’re successful, why wouldn’t the NRA or Big Pharma do this?” said
Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Wis.), the former chair of the Congressional
Progressive Caucus (CPC).
The relatively lower cost to help finance down-ballot races makes it
easier for well-funded groups to jump into a variety of contests with
little downside.
“Why wouldn’t everyone try to purchase candidates in primaries where the
price is discounted?” Pocan said.
Rep. Greg Casar (D-Texas), one of the newest members of the CPC who
joined the “squad” in 2022, shared similar thoughts in the wake of
Bowman’s loss.
“It becomes [a] very slippery slope where next it could be,” Casar said.
“Big Pharma, next after that it could be Wall Street, it could be anyone
with a, you know, enormous checkbook deciding to vastly outspend what
grassroots donors can put into a race.”
“Obviously, $25 million … is a significant amount in a primary,” added
Rep. Pete Aguilar (Calif.), the head of the House Democratic Caucus who,
like other top Democrats, endorsed Bowman and was struck by the sheer
amount of dollars dropped.
Bowman’s defeat — just four years after joining the House by defeating a
16-term moderate — put progressives on alert for what unencumbered
spending could mean for their shrinking team. Leftist strategists,
campaign advisers and activists working to protect incumbents and
recruit candidates have become more openly critical of AIPAC after
observing the $20 million spent in New York’s 16th Congressional
District, $15 million of which came from pro-Israel sources.
“The more money AIPAC pours in, the more they are unifying everyone else
against them,” said Hassan Martini, a Democratic operative who leads the
group No Dem Left Behind. “The ramifications of these harmful actions
will be felt far into the future for the pro-Israel lobby politically.”
Some Democrats see AIPAC and allies like the Democratic Majority for
Israel and the United Democracy Project as helpful surrogates for
President Biden’s approach to Israel, particularly in the wake of
Hamas’s attack, which left more than a thousand people dead.
Many on the far left, however, say Biden has become more hawkish during
his first term and see pro-Israel spending as elevating what they view
as a flawed policy in the region.
Bowman’s ouster, one progressive activist said, demonstrates “how far
back things have moved since we have acquiesced to Biden’s centrist and
frankly pro-war worldview.”
AIPAC plans to continue its engagement. And progressives are likewise
working to protect another vulnerable “squad” member, Rep. Cori Bush
(D-Mo.), in her Aug. 6 primary.
Bush was among the first House progressives to condemn the millions
dropped against Bowman as she contends with a hard reelection bid.
“AIPAC and their allies — backed by far-right Donald Trump megadonors —
poured a tidal wave of cash into this primary race showing us just how
desperate these billionaire extremists are in their attempts to buy our
democracy, promote their own gain, and silence the voices of progress
and justice,” Bush said in a statement.
“There should be no question about the need to get Big Money out of
politics,” she added.
Bush, a Black Lives Matter activist who won her congressional seat the
same year as Bowman, predicted a similar setup could play out in her
race against prosecutor Wesley Bell, whom AIPAC endorsed.
“These same extremists are coming to St. Louis. They are bankrolling a
faux-progressive, former Republican campaign operative to buy our deep
blue Democratic seat,” Bush said. “But let me be clear: St. Louis will
not be silenced or sold out. We will rise up, louder and stronger than
ever to show that our voices, our votes, and our values are not for sale.”
A spokesperson for AIPAC told The Hill its support spans the political
spectrum, including many within the Progressive Caucus. The group has
endorsed 28 CPC members.
“We support candidates from both parties solely based on one criteria —
their commitment to strengthening the US-Israel relationship,” the
spokesperson said. “We support scores of progressive candidates
including the Democratic leadership and nearly half of the membership of
the congressional Progressive Caucus, Black Caucus and Hispanic Caucus.”
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/progressives-unleash-fury-on-aipac-after-bowman-loss/ar-BB1pcEIS?cvid=16a1fed341f941489c5eb9b915aa40a1&ei=95
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