Right now, increasing costs, abortion rights, gun crime, and challenges to democracy are the main topics motivating Democratic voters.
However, the Democrat Party’s top budgeter is focused solely on Israel; disputes over the country are tearing the party apart in other districts.
Their Problem
The most recent one is a deep blue section of suburban Detroit when AIPAC is saturating Michigan’s 11th District in advertisements supporting Rep. Haley Stevens.
Over $22 million has been spent so far through the firm’s super PAC in nine secure Democratic primaries, funding vicious negative commercials against a handful of primarily leftist candidates.
Though in a twist related to reapportionment, Rep. Andy Levin (who published legislation that makes a two-state remedy official U.S. policy and critiqued the “creeping territorial expansion” of Palestinian territory) is challenging Stevens after Michigan managed to lose a congressional seat.
Levin is a senior official in the Obama administration who helped flip a GOP-held sway chair in 2018. As the son of former Sen. Carl Levin and the grandson of former Rep. Sander Levin, Levin comes from one of the most renowned Jewish families in American politics.
It’s a genealogy that “certainly [is] extremely worrisome to” AIPAC, according to Levin in a conversation with Politico.
The organization continues its attempts to influence the direction of the Democrat Party in Congress and as some Democratic voters’ feelings on the Israeli-Palestinian issue change.
Ohio Democrats Criticize J.D. Vance For Visiting America’s Ally Israel https://t.co/ycGy2BmmC9 pic.twitter.com/yhE7rGX8pR
— Daily Wire (@realDailyWire) July 20, 2022
According to OpenSecrets, the super PAC outspent all other organizations in Democratic primary elections so far this year, enabling six AIPAC-preferred candidates to win in deep blue districts, compared to just one defeat.
There are still more elections to come.
A representative for AIPAC’s super PAC, United Democracy Project, Patrick Dorton, stated the organization was paying close attention to a number of forthcoming primary elections, including in New York.
The Levin-Stevens primaries are currently expected to be among the group’s most costly expenditures in 2022, as well as the most intimate.
The Middle Ground
David Hecker, the head of Michigan’s American Federation of Teachers Union and a Levin proponent, said the following:
“This race matters to them just because Andy is so predominant, so forthright, and is from a very renowned Jewish political family.”
He also mentioned he is Jewish and respectful of a “secure and safe Jerusalem,” as well as Palestinian civil rights, “just like Andy.”
The Israel lobby is spending millions to defeat progressive Democrats in primary races: columnist via AlterNet https://t.co/dpR5xEKwrY
— Jeffrey Levin 🇺🇦 (@jilevin) July 25, 2022
Hecker said, “AIPAC would like every Jewish person to adopt their point of view.”
“However, Andy is a man of the utmost integrity. He has strong convictions and he’s not about to compromise on those strong convictions to halt an assault of money for his adversary.”
David Victor, who resides in the area and formerly served as AIPAC’s president from 2008 to 2010, agreed with the evaluation of Levin’s position and importance.
However, he added this is precisely why he believes Levin should be removed from Congress.
