One of the nation’s most formidable pro-Israel lobbying groups has strategically recruited candidates for more than a year to contest seats held by progressive members of the Congressional Black Caucus in the upcoming 2024 primaries, according to an investigation by The Intercept.
Newly uncovered documents from the Federal Election Commission reveal the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, or AIPAC, has spent about $3.6 million on the effort since February 2022 as the group works quietly behind the scenes to unseat at least three House members in the bloc of eight progressive Democrats known as “the Squad.”
The report alleges the money was initially unreported as it began filtering to 31 veteran members of the Black caucus last year in an apparent effort to undermine some of the bloc’s more vocal and controversial members.
The development, first reported in September by the online American nonprofit news organization, is newly relevant as at least two Black caucus members have triggered outrage among American Jews for voicing opposition toward Israel amid the country’s ongoing war with Hamas in defiance of the leading U.S. ally of in the Middle East.
AIPAC was mainly focused on unseating Democratic Reps. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota and Jamaal Bowman of New York who have recently expressed support for Palestinians in Gaza while calling for restricted aid to Israel — a position that has stoked deep divisions within the fractious caucus and set the stage for a potentially contentious ballot in 2024 as lawmakers navigate a fine line with voters who represent both sides of the conflict.
The small group of Democrats on the Squad are reportedly the only incumbents being targeted by the special interest group in the upcoming primaries after five new progressives joined the ranks of the Black caucus since 2019.
Democratic advocates also accused AIPAC of channeling Republican funds to support primary challenges against incumbent Democrats accused of expressing perceived anti-Semitic viewpoints amid the latest war between Israel and Palestine.
“AIPAC and its Republican donors are intentionally targeting progressive members of the Congressional Black Caucus with right-wing primary challenges,” said Alexandra Rojas, the executive director of Justice Democrats. “The CBC — and every caucus in Congress — has the opportunity now to demonstrate their power and stand up for all incumbents against AIPAC’s role in funneling GOP dollars into Democratic primaries.”
AIPAC’s work was unexpected given the organization’s historic support of Democratic incumbents as well as its cozy relationship with dozens of old-guard leaders in the caucus who have absorbed millions of dollars from AIPAC for nearly two years. At the same time, the members remained silent on the unfolding challenge to the progressive wing of the caucus while being fully aware of AIPAC’s secret efforts to derail the pro-Palestinian legislators.
Since 2022, the caucus’ top dollar recipients from AIPAC include $756,000 to Rep. Glenn Ivey of Maryland; $485,300 to House Democratic Caucus Leader Hakeem Jeffries of New York; $456,800 to Rep. Valerie Foushee of North Carolina; $459,900 to Rep. Richie Torres of New York, and $349,600 to Rep. Shontel Brown of Ohio, the report claims.
Jeffries, a key figure in congressional efforts to insulate incumbents from internal party challenges, maintains a close alliance with AIPAC, as do CBC leader Rep. Steven Horsford of Nevada, and CBC PAC leader Rep. Gregory Meeks, while they and other members have participated in AIPAC’s annual trips to Israeli conferences and cultural events, causing deeper divisions within the party.
Previously, Omar, Cori Bush and other progressives boycotted a congressional address by Israeli President Isaac Herzog in July, expressing concerns about the country’s judicial system as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sought to overhaul the nation’s judiciary, sparking months of massive protests that destabilized the region in the months preceding the war.
In contrast, Jeffries openly welcomed Herzog and, in August, led AIPAC’s annual congressional delegation to Israel, actions that further highlighted the widening rift within the Black Caucus.
Centrist Democrats in the caucus, including Jeffries and Reps. Josh Gottenheimer of New Jersey and Terri Sewell of Alabama also continue to receive considerable donations from AIPAC as the lawmakers form a united front against the far-left progressive agenda.
The divide added more pressure to the subject of war funding for Israel as progressive members like Omar, Bowman, Bush, Summer Lee and Ayanna Pressley have either condemned alleged human rights abuses against Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank, or voted against military aid to Israel since taking office.
The Squad caucus members opposed a July resolution absolving Israel of apartheid accusations, which drew immediate criticism from AIPAC and led to increased efforts to challenge their seats.
Simultaneously, the centrist wing formed the political action committee called Team Blue to shield Democratic members from primary challenges from left-leaning candidates, while alleged dark money was funding these counterefforts, the report claims.
According to sources, AIPAC approached Pittsburgh-area Democrat Lindsay Powell to challenge Rep. Lee of Pennsylvania’s 12th District, also a member of the Squad, but Powell declined.
Later, Allegheny County Controller Corey O’Connor turned down a separate offer from AIPAC to also challenge Lee, however, Edgewood, Pennsylvania, council member Bhavini Patel was poised to throw his hat in the ring to oppose Lee after he was approached too, the report claims.
Adding to the firestorm, former Ohio state Sen. Nina Turner shared a tweet about the secret donations from actor-turned politician Hill Harper, who plans to run for the U.S. Senate seat in Michigan that is being vacated by Democratic Sen. Debbie Stabenow.
In the tweet, Harper claimed AIPAC donors offered him $20 million to drop out of the Senate race and instead challenge Rashida Tlaib for her House seat in Michigan’s 12th District, prompting the post from Turner, who commented: “AIPAC is buying blue seats. It’s anti-democracy. Good on Hill Harper for having the integrity to refuse that money. $20 MILLION!”
When questioned about the effort to challenge caucus members, AIPAC defended its track record of supporting Black candidates.
“AIPAC proudly endorsed more than half the Black Caucus last cycle and United Democracy Project helped ensure pro-Israel African American Democrats in Ohio, North Carolina, and Maryland won their elections,” an AIPAC spokesperson told The Intercept. “While we have not made any decisions on specific races this cycle, we are constantly evaluating every seat held by a detractor of the U.S.-Israel relationship, and we base our assessments exclusively on their anti-Israel votes and statements.”
The CBC has not always supported emerging Black progressives, such as in 2018 when they didn’t support Democratic Rep. Pressley of Massachusetts, who won the race anyway and joined the caucus, and again in 2020 when Bowman endorsed Rep. Bush of Missouri, leading to her victory against Rep. William Lacy Clay, who served as a centrist member of the caucus for 20 years, while Bush took his place as the latest member of the Squad.
The latest uproar over anti-Israeli sentiments on Capitol Hill recalls two similar controversies involving progressive Democrats that occurred nearly two decades apart.
More than 20 years ago, in August 2002, Rep. Cynthia McKinney lost her House seat of 10 years in Georgia’s 4th District after she made controversial remarks in support of Palestinians while also accusing then-President George W. Bush of having advance knowledge of the Sept. 11 attacks.
Then, in February 2019, Rep. Omar faced similar scrutiny early in her term for comments criticizing Israel after she referenced the low-key contributions from AIPAC to Democratic House leaders on Twitter, writing, “It’s all about the Benjamins baby.”
She later took down the tweet and apologized, but Rep. Kevin McCarthy of California and other Republican leaders sought to capitalize off the issue by accusing Omar and Rep. Tlaib of anti-Semitism for their increasing criticism of Israel.
AIPAC collects a lot of money for itself while advising pro-Israel donors on which political candidates to support, making it a key source of funding for aspiring members of Congress.
