A group that’s backing leftist candidates for Congress who want to place conditions on U.S. aid to Israel is hosting a Monday night event aimed at bashing the pro-Israel lobby and “building progressive power in Congress.”
Our Revolution, an organizing group founded by self-described “democratic socialist” Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., is hosting a town hall featuring Congressional Progressive Caucus Chair Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., along with Reps. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., and Jamaal Bowman, D-N.Y., according to a press release sent Monday morning.
The group’s new campaign is “Committed to Countering the Rise in Rightwing, Anti-Peace Lobbying, Including AIPAC’s $100 Million Campaign to Unseat Candidates Calling For a Permanent Ceasefire,” the release said.
Congressional Progressive Caucus Chair Pramila Jayapal, center, is appearing in a virtual media event alongside Reps. Ilhan Omar and Jamaal Bowman.
Monday night’s event is part of “a strategic effort to shore up defenses against well-funded corporate lobbyists,” specifically naming the American Israeli Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) – an organization that works along bipartisan lines to promote the traditional U.S.-Israel relationship.
AIPAC has been in the crosshairs of progressive lawmakers in recent months, particularly as it has ratcheted up criticism of those lawmakers for not supporting Israel’s response to Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack.
Israel’s ensuing ground invasion and airstrikes in Gaza have served to bring long-simmering fractures within the Democratic Party to the surface, with a growing number of young leftists in Congress calling for a harsher stance against Israel, including conditioning military aid on its treatment of civilians in Gaza.
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Our Revolution is backing candidates who, among other things, have called for a permanent cease-fire in Gaza. But Republicans and more moderate Democrats warn that a permanent cease-fire will only help Hamas, and could endanger the lives of dozens of Israeli hostages still being held by anti-Israel terrorists since October.
Our Revolution was launched by self-described democratic socialist Sen. Bernie Sanders. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana, File)
The group said AIPAC is “targeting some of our most ardent advocates for peace in Congress.”
Fox News Digital reached out to AIPAC for comment.
AIPAC is expected to funnel millions of dollars into primary and general election candidates to unseat those progressive lawmakers, including Bowman, who is appearing at the Monday night event.
“The candidates Our Revolution is backing have been on the forefront of advocating for a cease-fire in Gaza, as well as voicing their intent to condition U.S. funding of the far-right Netanyahu regime,” the press release said, referencing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
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“They have also been at the forefront of the fight for critical progressive issues that will be crucial to driving voter turnout in the 2024 general election, including climate action, student loan relief, affordable housing, comprehensive immigration reform, and racial justice.”
Our Revolution has been critical of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. (Reuters/Ronen Zvulun/Pool/File Photo)
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Asked for a response to the Monday event, AIPAC told Fox News Digital, “We are proud to engage in the democratic process to help elect pro-Israel candidates, and we will not be deterred by an extremist, anti-Israel fringe. We believe that it is entirely consistent with progressive values to stand with the Jewish state as it confronts aggression from Iran and its terrorist proxies.”
A spokesperson for the group also told Fox News Digital that AIPAC is “the largest PAC contributor” to Democratic candidates.