Jamal Bowman (D-NY), an outspoken critic of Biden's genocide in Gaza, was successfully ousted by AIPAC and other pro-Israel groups yesterday. AIPAC spent an unprecedented $15 mil on the Democratic Primary in NY's District 16. Including other pro-Israel groups, BBC reported that, "Overall, $24.8m was spent by various groups in the race, making it the
most expensive House of Representatives primary in history." There are many lessons and takeaways. Here I emphasize 3 of them by excerpting 2 articles on the significance of the election.
1) The manner in which the Israel-Palestine issue has brought the internecine conflicts between progressive Democrats and moderates to the fore and stoked internal party divisions by supporting members of the Congressional Black Caucus and Progressive Caucus** who adopt pro-Israel policies, while isolating those who refuse to support the now-bi-partisan policy of unconditional support for Israel-- esp. "the Squad"
2) The stealthy nature of the policy support, as many of the ads and rhetoric against Bowman did not even mention Israel, much less any particular policy preference related to it.
3) The important fact that much of the money that went into defeating Bowman (and Cori Bush is next on the hit list) came from the GOP.
The following articles (and links contained therein) discuss these 3 and other serious implications of yesterday's primary in District 16, NY, which looks like a template of things to come. The first piece is from The Intercept and the second from Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft.
**Fr. AP article linked above: "AIPAC has defended its track record, telling The Associated Press last
month that 'it is entirely consistent with progressive values to stand
with the Jewish state' and that the group has a history of supporting
members of the Congressional Progressive Caucus."
Fr. Intercept (6/26/24):
Progressives on AIPAC’s Defeat of Bowman: “Now We Know How Much It Costs to Buy an Election”
Rep. Jamaal Bowman’s Tuesday upset defeat by Westchester
County Executive George Latimer generated many perspectives on what
exactly precipitated his downfall.
The New York Times published the headline “Bowman Falls in House
Primary, Overtaken by Flood of Pro-Israel Money” — before swapping it
out for “Bowman Falls to Latimer in a Loss for Progressive Democrats.”
Other coverage emphasized that the American Israel Public Affairs
Committee’s spending wasn’t the only factor in the race and that Bowman’s flaws made him particularly vulnerable, as did changed district lines that made his reelection even tougher.
Progressive strategists, however, had a much more clear takeaway from the results.
“You don’t drop $15 million on an election if your positions are
popular,” said Eva Borgwardt, national spokesperson for the Jewish
advocacy group IfNotNow, which endorsed Bowman. “This was an act of
desperation from a pro-war lobby that is at odds with the majority of
Americans, including American Jews.”
Borgwardt was referring to nearly $15 million spent on the race by
AIPAC, the Israel lobby’s flagship in the U.S. Millions more poured in
from AIPAC-aligned groups and donors, bringing the outside spending
total to around $25 million.
Bowman’s supporters emphasized that AIPAC attacked him not only
because of his criticism of human rights abuses in Israel, but also
because he has supported progressive policies that are popular among the
party’s base.
“Congressman Bowman’s progressive platform — which includes defending
Palestinian rights and halting weapons to the Israeli military — is
popular among Democratic voters,” said Beth Miller, political director
for Jewish Voice for Peace Action, which endorsed Bowman. “AIPAC had to
spend a truly unprecedented amount of money in order to buy NY-16.”
“It is noteworthy that many of AIPAC’s ads did not even mention
Israel,” she said. “AIPAC understands that they are losing on the
issues, because voters and constituents do not want to fund a genocide.”
The amount of spending on the race should be alarming to everyone who cares about democracy, said Sophie Ellman-Golan, director of strategic communications at Jews for Racial and Economic Justice.
“Now we know how much it costs to buy an election,” she said. “That price tag was nearly $25 million.”
AIPAC invested historic amounts of money in the race because it saw
that unconditional support for Israel was unpopular among Democratic
voters, Ellman-Golan said. “They would not have spent this much money if
they were not scared,” she said. “You don’t spend $25 million — an
unheard of amount in a primary — if you’re feeling confident in your
candidate.”....
“Republican billionaires just bought a safe Democratic seat through a
Democratic primary,” said WFP National Director Maurice Mitchell.
“That’s something that should alarm everyone in the coalition, not just
progressives.”
Justice Democrats’ communications director, Usamah Andrabi, said the
takeaway from Tuesday’s race is that Democrats are allowing big money — and Republican donors — to shape elections. (Full article here)
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Fr. Quincey Institute of Responsible Statecraft (6/26/24):
