The pro-Israel group under the leadership of the powerful American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) are making efforts to shape the United States politics. This lobby group plans to spend tens of millions of dollars in order to target those who stand against Israel and don’t support them. Their main focus is on those who have been critical of Israel’s action in Gaza. It includes the members of the squad. The 2024 elections will be a crucial moment to see how these groups influence United States politics, especially as public opinion on Israel continues to evolve.
What is the American Israel Public Affairs Committee?
The role of AIPAC is clearly expressed through its history. This organization was set up by an Israeli lobbyist to handle the fallout from the 1953 massacre in Qibya. It was the place where many women and children of Palestine were killed. In 1959, the name of this organization was changed to AIPAC. It gained strength after the 1973 Yom Kippur War due to increased financial support.
For many years this lobby group had almost unmatched power in the United States. Aipac said that it had bipartisan support for Israel and made efforts to silence its critics. But recently the influence of this organization has declined. Aipac also received criticism due to its strong support to Israel’s president Benjamin Netanyahu.
Haaretz even labelled AIPAC as a “pro-Netanyahu, anti-Israel lobby,” suggesting it now promotes Netanyahu’s agenda.
Why has the AIPAC strategy changed?
It is quite notable to know the recent changes in the AIPAC. For almost ten years, AIPAC has supported those political candidates that stand in favour of Israel, hoping others would fund their campaigns. But in December 2021, this lobby group had created a super political action committee (Super PAC). It is called the United Democracy Project (UDP). This new strategy allows them to directly spend money on different campaigns without donating money.
This change came to light because this lobby group is worried about decreasing bipartisan support for Israel in the United States polls. Because younger Democrats, including Jewish Americans, strongly criticized Israel’s actions in Gaza against Palestinians.
AIPAC fears that electing candidates who are critical of Israel could reduce US military aid, weaken diplomatic support, and increase pressure for a Palestinian state. So, the UDP is working to block these candidates in the primaries and target progressive Democrats who have pushed for a Gaza ceasefire.
Some other lobby groups
There are many other smaller groups whose goal is the same as AIPAC. Democratic Majority for Israel (DMFI) is a key player. Mark Mellman created it about five years ago. Furthermore, JewBelong has even put up pink billboards in US cities supporting Israel, one of which boldly claimed:
‘Trust Me. If Israel Wanted to Commit Genocide in Gaza, It Could’.
Interestingly, the UDP has not engaged in this year’s primary battle against Summer Lee, despite spending over $3 million to oppose her in 2022. Instead, Republican mega-donor Jeffrey Yass has become the largest supporter of a PAC called Moderate Pac, backing Lee’s opponent, Bhavini Patel. This PAC is running ads accusing Lee’s criticism of Biden as supporting Trump, even though Yass himself supports Trump.
Meanwhile, J Street, a more moderate pro-Israel group founded in 2007, aims to counter AIPAC’s unwavering support for right-wing Israeli governments. J Street has established a PAC to support candidates who advocate for a two-state solution, but it has raised only about $4 million this election cycle.
How do they target the others?
This year AIPAC makes an effort to target those who criticize Israel. They plan to spend $100 million this year against congressional candidates, especially Democrats. The UDP has already spent more than $49 million, and most of it is still untouched. They also sound money on political ads to target the opponents of Israel.
These ads focus on other issues and don’t clearly show they’re funded by a pro-Israel group. Critics believe AIPAC is trying to scare candidates into avoiding criticism of Israel by threatening to support opponents. Members of the Squad, like Jamaal Bowman and Cori Bush, are expected to be targets of these attacks. Even though the focus may be on issues unrelated to their views on Gaza, the aim is to weaken their positions and influence their political careers.
