AIPAC HELPS DEFEAT REP. BOWMAN IN COSTLIEST HOUSE
PRIMARY RACE
Allan C. Brownfeld, Editor
Special Interest Report
August 2024
In June, Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-NY), a vocal critic of Israel’s war in Gaza, was
defeated in the Democratic primary. for New York’s 16th Congressional district by
Westchester County Executive George Latimer, a strong supporter of Israeli
policy. The Washington Post (June 26,2024) reported that, “Latimer was…aided by
massive spending against Bowman, mostly by the American Israel Public Affairs
Committee’s (AIPAC) super PAC, which aims to unseat lawmakers it deems
unsupportive of Israel. Total spending in the race neared $25 million.”
AIPAC’s super PAC, United Democracy Project (UDP), spent more than $14 million on
ads in the race, the most it has ever spent on one contest, according to Patrick
Dorton, a UDP spokesman. This was the costliest House primary in U.S. history.
It has focused attention upon AIPAC’s role in American politics.
Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) says that every Republican in Congress has an “AIPAC
babysitter.” The Congressman was speaking with former Fox News host Tucker
Carlson for an episode of his podcast. He said: “Everyone but me has an AIPAC
person. It’s like your babysitter, who’s always talking to you for AIPAC. These
babysitters tend to be from the representative’s district, but they’re firmly
part of AIPAC.”
According to Rep. Massie, “When they come to D.C., you have to go to lunch with
them. It’s like having a buddy system from another country.” He is one of the
few lawmakers who has not taken part in it.
In Massie’s case—-he won his last congressional race with over 75 per cent of the
vote—-AIPAC spent about $400,000 to defeat him. He says that AIPAC continues to
run ads against him because they are afraid, he will run for statewide office,
such as senator or governor. In the interview, he questioned why AIPAC is not
required to register as a foreign agent of Israel.
One strong advocate for AIPAC to register under the Foreign Agents Registration
Act (FARA), is a former AIPAC employee and Clinton administration official M.J.
Rosenberg. Writing in The Forward in 2008, he declared that, “It’s time for
AIPAC to register as a foreign agent. It’s AIPAC whose clout on matters relating
to Israel exceeds the clout of the NRA on matters related to guns.”
If AIPAC were registered as an agent of Israel, Rosenberg points out, it would be
forbidden by law to contribute to American political campaigns. It is widely
recognized that AIPAC represents the views of the government of Israel. Peter
Beinart, an editor of Jewish Currents, points out that, “AIPAC is not independent
of the Israeli government.” He notes that when Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu
came out against the U.S. agreement with Iran concerning nuclear weapons, AIPAC,
“pretty much had to kowtow to the Israeli government.” AIPAC has helped make
Israel the largest cumulative recipient of U.S. aid since the end of World War
II. *
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