US Politics |OT|

[LurkerJ]

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SvennoJ said:

US Congress member Cori Bush latest to face pro-Israel lobby spending

Missouri state representative Cori Bush has been an outspoken critic of United States support for Israel during the war on Gaza. She has also been vocal about the influence of the pro-Israel lobby group the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC).

Tomorrow, she will become the latest progressive in the US legislature to test whether she can overcome a deluge of AIPAC spending as she faces her challenger, prosecutor Wesley Bell, in the Democratic primary in Missouri.

AIPAC’s associated super PAC, the United Democracy Project, has spent more than $8.4m to unseat Bush, according to Federal Election Commission (FEC) data. The race comes after the group injected a record $14.5m to support the successful challenge of New York Congress member Jamaal Bowman, who, like Bush, is among a group of congressional progressives known as the “squad”.

Critics say money from groups such as AIPAC, which has largely embraced the policies of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, distort local races by flooding the airwaves with attack ads funded by individuals outside of the district or the Democratic Party.

“This is only the beginning,” Bush has told AP. “Because if they can unseat me, then they’re going to continue to come after more Democrats.”

The half a million dollar they spent to knock out Nina Turner years ago now looks like pocket change in comparison. A foreign organisation representing a far right government interests is deciding winners and losers in what is meant to be a fair democratic process, if this isn't election interference, I don't know what is.

Cori Bush loses primary after pro-Israel groups spend millions to oust ‘Squad’ member

St Louis prosecutor Wesley Bell defeated Missouri’s first Black female member of Congress with about 51% of the vote

Bell’s win marks a second major victory for the powerful American Israel Public Affairs Committee (Aipac) after it played a leading role in unseatingNew York congressman Jamaal Bowman, another progressive Democrat who criticised the scale of Palestinian civilians deaths in Gaza, in a June primary.

Aipac pumped $8.5m into the race in Missouri’s first congressional district to support Bell through its campaign funding arm, the United Democracy Project (UDP), after Bush angered some pro-Israel groups as one of the first members of Congress to call for a ceasefire after the 7 October Hamas attack on Israel.

Much of the UDP’s money comes from billionaires who fund hardline pro-Israel causes and Republicans in other races, including some who have given to Donald Trump’s campaign.

Bell has denied being recruited by pro-Israel groups to run against Bush, but suspicion lingered after he abandoned a challenge for the US Senate and entered the congressional race not long after Jewish organisations in St Louis began to seek a candidate to take on Bush after accusing her of “intentionally fuelling antisemitism”.

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/article/2024/aug/06/missouri-cori-bush-primary-bell-aipac-israel

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