The Hebrew version of the Israeli newspaper Ynet, the online version of one of Israel’s largest newspapers, Yedioth Ahronoth, put out a shockingly blunt article written by its U.S. correspondent, Tzippy Shmilovitz, boasting that “the lobby is embarking on an all-out war to oust rebellious politicians on both sides of the fence”.
The article not only admitted that the Israeli lobby was behind Thomas Massie’s loss in Kentucky, but also behind primary campaigns against Israel-critical progressives in the Democratic Party, such as Cori Bush and Jamaal Bowman.
Referring to the primary against Thomas Massie, the article wrote, “Massie did indeed lose easily; in fact, he had no chance. Not only because when Trump decides to destroy a Republican’s career, that career does indeed end, but also because Massie got into trouble with one of the most powerful political organizations in Washington history: the pro-Israel lobby AIPAC”.
“Massie, one might say, represented for AIPAC the beginning of a challenge - still very small - even among Republican elected officials. And it was very important for AIPAC to stop the drift on this side as quickly as possible,” the article added.
“Very few organizations have the power of the pro-Israel lobby. This power was built over decades of close relations between every US administration and every Israeli government”, the article went on to add, even claiming that it “ benefits from the disproportionate influence of American Jewry”, a reference to Zionist billionaires like Paul Singer and Miriam Adelson.
The article went on to boast that “AIPAC can end the careers of anyone it deems hostile to Israel,” boasting that pro-Israel lobby groups ended the careers of Israel-critical progressives on the Democratic side, writing, “Last year, it successfully invested more than $23 million to defeat the Corey Bush (sic.)From Missouri and Jamal Bauman (sic.)From New York, two progressives who have loudly opposed American aid. AIPAC also poured more than a million dollars into the Democratic primaries in Oregon, and helped Congresswoman Maxine Dexter in her race against a progressive opponent.”
The article went on to boast that after progressives in the Democratic Party began to criticize Israel, AIPAC changed it’s lobbying efforts into direct election interference.
The article wrote:
In 2021, AIPAC decided on a truly seismic change, and ahead of the 2022 midterm elections, it established two new political bodies: AIPAC PAC, a body that allowed it to directly contribute to candidates’ campaigns; and the United Democracy Project (UDP), a Super PAC organization that can raise and spend unlimited huge sums to run campaigns for or against candidates. The main reason for the change was the rise of the progressive wing of the Democratic Party, which became known as The SquadThey began to criticize Israel loudly, call for security aid to be conditioned, and present clear pro-Palestinian positions.
AIPAC realized that traditional lobbying methods were no longer effective, and came to the conclusion that in order to keep Congress pro-Israel, they must use aggressive financial power to defeat anti-Israel candidates, and if possible, even in the primaries. This change transformed AIPAC from an advocacy lobby into one of the most powerful and influential players in US election campaigns
“Since the 2022 midterm elections, AIPAC has spent more than $221 million in Democratic primaries. The organization sometimes hides behind obscure groups with different names, realizing that AIPAC’s brand has become toxic in some quarters,” the article went on to boast.
The article, however, went on to complain that AIPAC is losing some sway in the Democratic Party, due to democratic party voters overwhelmingly opposing Israel.
“A recent New York Times poll found that 57% of Democrats support the Palestinians, compared to just 17% who support Israel,” the article wrote, adding, “According to the poll, nearly 75% of Democrats oppose military aid to Israel, up from 45% just three years ago. Nearly half of Democratic Party supporters said the party supports Israel too much”.
“Many Democrats who were once friendly to AIPAC see the organization as turning from a bipartisan arm of the Netanyahu government,” the outlet complained.
However, it boasted that most democratic presidential candidates have refused to distance themselves from AIPAC, wiring “there is a long list of potential Democratic presidential candidates who have dodged AIPAC’s question posed to them by Politico, including former Vice President Kamala Harris, former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, Senators Mark Kelly of Arizona and Jon Ossoff of Georgia, and Governors Wes Moore of Maryland and Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan.”
“The refusal of such prominent names to comment makes it clear that despite everything, and at least for now, AIPAC still has influence in Democratic politics,” the article added.
Had this article been published in English by a critic of Israel, it would be branded as an anti-Semitic conspiracy theory, and yet in Hebrew, the Israeli media is openly boasting about the Israel lobby’s effort to buy Congress.
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