American Politics and Israel

Donna Edwards’s defeat affirms the fact, Israel lobby’s power comes from the Benjamins: 

The Israel lobby has now won several races against what it calls the "radical" "anti-Israel" left in the Democratic Party by pouring on millions-- notably the defeats of Donna Edwards and Nina Turner.

from the Jerusalem Post

Donna Edwards loses Maryland primary following $6M pro-Israel spending bonanza

The American Israel Public Affairs Committee and its super PAC, United Democracy Project, spent nearly $6 million in its efforts to keep Edwards out of Congress — a new record in political spending for the group, which only created a political action committee to financially support candidates earlier this year. Another pro-Israel group, Democratic Majority for Israel, spent an additional $426,000.

It was the largest yet demonstration of the powerful role pro-Israel lobbying money is playing in national political campaigns, particularly Democratic primaries. AIPAC’s PAC has spent a total of $21 million this campaign cycle, solely on Democratic primary candidates. The attack ads funded by that money do not focus on Israel issues, Haaretz reported.

from the Guardian

Aipac hails Democrat’s defeat for not being sufficiently pro-Israel

Aipac proclaimed Ivey’s victory, by 51% to 35%, as evidence that “being pro-Israel is both good policy and good politics”.

Edwards’s defeat will be taken as a warning by other Democratic contenders not to criticise Israeli policies, or risk a well-funded campaign against them.

Aipac and its allies spent nearly $7m through political action committees to block Edwards, who served eight years as the first Black woman elected to Congress from Maryland before losing a bid for the Senate in 2016.

Edwards was endorsed by the House speaker, Nancy Pelosi, and other leading Democrats.

But she angered some pro-Israel groups during her earlier stint in Congress by failing to back Israeli attacks on Gaza and for her support of the Obama administration’s nuclear deal with Iran when it was strongly opposed by the Israeli government.

Following Ivey’s victory, Aipac declared it had helped nine “pro-Israel Democrats defeat their anti-Israel opponents in 2022!”.