House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) avoided condemning or endorsing the American Israel Public Affairs Committee’s role in Democratic primaries.
AIPAC earned its biggest scalp this week when House progressive “Squad” Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-NY) was dealt a landslide defeat in his primary against George Latimer. The group poured enough funds into the race to turn it into the most expensive House race in U.S. history. Speaking with reporters, the pro-Israel Jeffries took a middle line, refusing to side with Bowman or AIPAC.
“Pro-Israel groups are going to support pro-Israel members of Congress. Pro-reproductive freedom groups are going to support pro-reproductive freedom members of Congress. Pro-climate groups are going to support pro-climate members of Congress, or candidates, out in communities across the country,” Jeffries dismissively replied when asked if AIPAC’s massive spending was “appropriate.”
The Democratic leader went on to shift focus to “democracy reform,” saying the different factions of the Democratic Party were united around protecting democracy.
Another reporter pressed him on Bowman, asking what message his primary defeat sent.
“From the very beginning of my journey in Congress, there hasn't been an electoral cycle where a sitting member of the House Democratic Caucus hasn't been lost,” he answered. “It’s only happened in a handful of occasions, each and every Congress — it’s only happened once in this cycle. So, in my view, it's hard to draw any general conclusion when the overwhelming majority of incumbent members of the House Democratic Caucus, from the moment that I first showed up in Washington, D.C., had been reelected. Each district is unique. Each campaign is unique.”
He was also asked about a possible repeat of Bowman’s situation — Squad Rep. Cori Bush’s (D-MO) August primary challenge against an AIPAC-backed centrist challenger.
“We have supported, as House Democratic leaders, every single incumbent member of the House Democratic Caucus,” Jeffries said. “And there's no expectations as far as I can tell that that will change. We have a process to discuss the manner in which any endorsements are rolled out and presented to the communities that our members are privileged to represent. That process is ongoing right now for Rep. Bush and several other members who will face the voters in August.”
AIPAC is among the most powerful lobbying groups in the country, pouring huge amounts of funds into both Republican and Democratic candidates. Their role has come under heavy scrutiny by progressive Democrats, scrutiny that has been magnified by the war in Gaza and Bowman’s race.
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“An unspoken secret in Congress is that much of the reflexive, blind, unconditional vote support for nearly any Israeli gov action isn’t from actual agreement,” Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) wrote on X this month. “It’s from fear. Reps are terrified of this. Of AIPAC. So they don’t vote their conscience. They vote their fear.”
Jeffries has struggled to keep his caucus together over the passions stirred by the war in Gaza, with the party split between the pro-Palestinian views of the mostly younger, progressive Democrats and pro-Israeli views of mostly older, centrist Democrats.
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