Has the Squad reached a turning point?
The members of the Squad — progressive, Democratic
Congress members of color — are facing primary
challenges because of their position against
Israel. Pro-Israel groups such as AIPAC and
Republican billionaire donors are pouring tons
of money to unseat Black social justice
lawmakers who oppose U.S. support for Israeli
apartheid and the genocide of Palestinians.
What we are witnessing is a big money
operation designed to purge
Democratic critics of Israel, at a time of massive public opposition
and outrage over what Israel is doing to the
Palestinians.
AIPAC is focused on the Squad, as the
pro-Israel lobbying group is expected to spend $100
million to unseat these Democrats who have
urged President Biden to call for a ceasefire in
Gaza. In a first test for progressive lawmakers, Rep.
Summer Lee — the first Black woman elected to
Congress from Pennsylvania — killed it in the
Democratic primary. Lee won by 20 points against
her centrist opponent, Edgewood, Pa., City
Councilwoman Bhavini
Patel.
Patel, who positioned herself as a
centrist Democrat, received financial support
from Jeffrey
Yass, a GOP businessman, TikTok and
TruthSocial investor and billionaire megadonor
who supports public funding of private schools
and conservative groups in Israel. Yass, now
the largest
donor nationwide in the 2024 election, funds the Moderate
PAC, a super PAC that supports centrist
Democrats like Lee’s primary challenger. Patel
disavowed Yass’ support, which included more
than $600,000 to sponsor ads that painted Lee
as unsupportive
of Biden because she criticized him.
One must wonder why a Republican is
inserting himself into a Democratic primary and
getting into Black folks’ — or specifically,
Summer Lee’s — business. Well, Yass is also
tight with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu and bankrolled Netanyahu’s judicial
coup, an attempt to take over the Israeli
courts that was met with mass
protests.
Meanwhile, with AIPAC spreading its money around to
Democratic primary challengers, some members of
the Squad may have more of an uphill battle for
reelection than Rep. Lee.
AIPAC is bankrolling the campaign of
Westchester County Executive George Latimer, a
Democrat who wants to unseat Rep. Jamaal Bowman
in his New York district in Bronx and
Westchester counties. Bowman is considered one
of the most vulnerable
progressives running in Congress, with a
district that was redrawn to represent more of
suburban Westchester.
AIPAC is responsible for 42% of $1.4
million in total campaign contributions to
Latimer, according to The
Intercept. And a Trump Republican megadonor hosted a
fundraiser for the candidate. An AIPAC donor
even urged Jewish Republicans to switch
parties and vote against Bowman — a critic
of Israel who has called for a ceasefire — in
the Democratic primary.
Missouri Congresswoman Cori Bush is being
outspent and outpolled by challenger Wesley
Bell, the St. Louis County prosecutor. Bush,
who has been among the most vocal lawmakers in
Congress against the Israeli bombing of Gaza,
has warned supporters that AIPAC
wants to buy the House seat. And with AIPAC support, Bell has $1.1
million in cash on hand, double the amount of
Bush. One poll, from February, has Bell leading
Bush by 22
points.
Elected in a wave of progressive prosecutors following the
Michael Brown killing in Ferguson, Mo., Bell,
who was running to unseat GOP Sen. Josh Hawley,
suddenly switched races to run against Bush.
“I’m being targeted by AIPAC because not
only do I believe Palestinians deserve to live
freely and peacefully just like Israelis, but
because I want to protect our democracy from
Republican extremism,” Bush told The New York Times.
“We proudly endorse Wesley Bell, who is a
strong advocate for the U.S.-Israel
relationship,” said AIPAC’s
Marshall Wittmann, “in clear contrast to his opponent who
represents the extremist anti-Israel fringe.” Bell criticized Rep. Bush for saying
Israel was engaging in an ”ethnic cleansing
campaign” against the Palestinians in Gaza,
calling her statement “offensive” and saying “I
think we have to stand with our allies.” Bell
promised to “stand with the president.”
While Rep. Bush has received
contributions from NBA star Kyrie
Irving of the Dallas Mavericks, and
progressive groups such as the Squad Victory
Fund and Progressive Voices for Peace, Bell has
enjoyed donations from a number of billionaires,
including donors tied to Republican politics.
For example, hedge fund billionaire Daniel Loeb
— who has contributed to Democrats such as
Barack Obama and Cory Booker — has funded GOP
politicos such as Elise Stefanik, Kevin
McCarthy, Liz Cheney, Adam Kinzinger, John
McCain and Mitt Romney.
And Reid Hoffman, the billionaire founder of LinkedIn and
Biden donor who bankrolled Trump rival Nikki
Haley gave a maximum donation to Bell.
Democratic
Majority for Israel (DMFI) PAC has endorsed Wesley Bell, claiming
that Bush has a “longstanding enmity towards
Israel.” DMFI PAC also endorsed Latimer in the
New York race against Bowman. The pro-Israel
group is spending a total of $3 million for
these two primary challengers to progressive
Black incumbents.
In Minnesota, Rep. Ilhan Omar is facing a
challenge as well. Democratic leader Hakeem
Jeffries — whose largest
contributor is AIPAC and who was accused of caping
for Netanyahu by attending an AIPAC-funded junket
to Israel with 24 House Democrats — is
nonetheless supporting Omar and all Democratic
incumbents. Omar, whose daughter Isra
Hirsi was arrested and suspended from
Columbia University for participating in a
pro-Palestinian encampment protest, called AIPAC
a “right-wing super PAC” funded by “dark money.”
Omar, who squeaked by and won a primary
challenge against Black former Minneapolis City
Councilman Don Samuels, is polling
18 points ahead of Samuels in a 2024 rematch.
Samuels claims he is not receiving money from
AIPAC, which spent $350,000
against Omar in 2022, but says he would consider
it if offered.
At this point, Squad members Reps.
Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.), Alexandria
Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) and Ayanna
Pressley (D-Mass.) are safe. Pressley, who
has evolved from a pro-Israel
stance and now calls for a ceasefire, has
not had a serious opponent since her first victory in 2018.
AIPAC has not made any moves against her in this
election cycle, according
to Politico.
In light of the robust spending by AIPAC
and others, more than 20 progressive groups have
joined forces to form “Reject
AIPAC.” This collective effort is designed to
challenge AIPAC’s campaign to silence “growing
dissent in Congress” over Israel.
That growing dissent reflects a
humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza — a U.S.-funded
industrial massacre of tens of thousands of
Palestinians, famine and the first livestreamed
social media genocide. Two-thirds
of voters, including majorities among Democrats,
Independents and Republicans have called for a
ceasefire in Gaza and half
of Biden voters polled believe Israel is committing
genocide against Palestinians.
A majority
of Black Americans want a permanent ceasefire and
conditional U.S. military aid to
Israel.
Palestine has become a defining human rights, social
justice and free speech moment of this century.
Protests supporting Gaza are spilling into the
streets and college campuses of America as Black
college students, scholars, clergy, civic
leaders, activists and others are organizing and
speaking out for boycott, divestment and
sanctions (BDS) against Israel, facing arrest,
suspension and punishment for doing so.
And it is within this context that the Israel lobby, like
the NRA and others, is engaged in the legalized
bribery of politicians, pouring money into races
to replace the Squad with more compliant,
moderate members of Congress — including
compliant Black lawmakers — who will toe the
line on the billions of dollars going to Israel
and who will support everything Israel does.
This commentary is also posted on The
Grio.
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