Jon Ossoff Victory Proves That the Israel Lobby Still Has an Iron Grip on
Democrats
An analysis by the Washington Report on Middle East Affairs shows the
pro-Israel lobby contributes significantly more money to Democrats than
Republicans. And those campaign funds appear to be doing their job.
by Jessica Buxbaum
February 03rd, 2021
Mint press
By Jessica Buxbaum
Jerusalem - Jon Ossoff's historic win was presented as defying America's
far-right. His election to office helped flip the Senate blue and after six
long years, changed Mitch McConnell's title from majority to minority
leader. He defeated Donald Trump ally Sen. David Perdue by teaming up with a
Black reverend associated with the late civil rights icon, Rep. John Lewis.
And he was the first Jew to win a Georgia Senate seat while a racist,
anti-Semitic mob raided the U.S. Capitol.
Despite these progressive feats, Ossoff's political experience and campaign
donations reveal he's more aligned with the Democratic establishment than
meets the eye.
Ossoff's undeniable love affair with the Israel lobby
Ossoff was one of the pro-Israel lobby's top donation recipients for the
2019-2020 campaign cycle, ranking at number four with a total of $607,915. J
Street, the Democratic Majority for Israel (DMFI), New Israel Fund, and the
Joint Action Committee for Political Affairs (JACPAC) all funded his
campaign. Out of the Israel lobbying groups, JACPAC handed Ossoff the most
money with a sum of $12,250. Pro-Israel groups J Street, DMFI, and the
Jewish Democratic Council for America endorsed him as well.
Before becoming a senator, Ossoff didn't have many political credentials to
his name. According to The Forward, he handled foreign policy issues as a
congressional aide for Georgia Rep. Hank Johnson. In the role, he "work[ed]
on legislation improving military funding for Israel and mandating tougher
inspections of Iranian nuclear facilities."
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While he supports the Iran Deal and opposes Israeli annexation of the West
Bank, the senator has openly embraced Zionist views. He is opposed to the
Palestinian-led Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement, has
supported Israeli attacks on Gaza, commended Israel's normalization
agreements with Arab countries, and supports a two-state solution. A
two-state solution is a longtime Democratic Party position, but progressive
public support for it is diminishing with the growing momentum for the One
Democratic State Campaign.
Foreign policy wasn't a large section of Ossoff's campaign platform. As a
state senate hopeful upholding a "Black-Jewish alliance," he focused more on
domestic race relations than geopolitics. However, Ossoff's campaign did
publish a document outlining his stance on Israel. In it, he pledged
unwavering support for the state, specifically lauding his commitment to
Israel's security and his opposition to BDS as well as any legislation
permitting the U.S. to divest from Israel.
Ossoff-Israel-PaperOssoff-Israel-Paper
Ossoff promised to "vigorously" defend Israel from peaceful boycotts
"Israel's security requires the Israel Defense Forces to maintain a
Qualitative Military Edge (QME) in the region. U.S. foreign assistance
ensures that Israel has the military and intelligence capabilities necessary
to maintain that QME, to defend itself against missile and rocket threats,
and to prevent terrorist attacks within Israel," the statement read.
"In the Senate, I will push for strong, mutually beneficial, and mutually
respectful U.S.-Israel relations, whose strength can sustain Congressional
support for the appropriation of U.S. foreign assistance vital to Israel's
security," Ossoff said.
This excerpt suggests Ossoff supports continuing U.S. military aid to
Israel-an issue that received nationwide condemnation after Congress voted
to give $600 to Americans amid a pandemic-spurred recession yet handed $500
million in aid to Israel.
In addition to the pro-Israel endorsements Ossoff snagged, he often touts
his connections to pro-Israel politicians. His June, 2020 position paper
cited his relationship to Michael Oren, the far-right Israeli ambassador he
studied under at Georgetown University. Ossoff also credits his historic
rise in politics to Rep. Lewis. While Lewis is remembered as a prominent
civil rights activist, he was also staunchly pro-Israel. Like Ossoff, he
opposed the BDS movement and was considered a friend to Israel.
The Democratic Party toeing the line with pro-Israel funds
Along with Ossoff being the first Jew elected to Georgia's senate, Rev.
Raphael Warnock also made history as the first African-American elected to
Georgia's senate. Together the Democratic pair attributed their success to
having fostered a strong Black-Jewish alliance.
Despite his win, Warnock's campaign was marred with controversy prior to the
state's highly-publicized runoff election in January. Warnock's Republican
opponent, Kelly Loeffler, targeted the reverend's past criticism of Israel
in an attack ad. Warnock signed a letter in 2019 comparing Israel to
apartheid South Africa. He also criticized Trump's decision to move the U.S.
embassy to Jerusalem and slammed Israel for shooting Gazan protesters.
Loeffler's smears worked. His campaign was losing public support and funding
was drying up. Two days after Loeffler's attacks, Rev. Warnock immediately
backtracked and released a statement "condemning" the BDS movement and
declaring his support for Israel. His quick reversal earned him an
endorsement from the Israel lobby group DMFI. Similar to Ossoff, Warnock was
also part of the Israel lobby's top 10 campaign donation recipients,
securing funding from J Street, DMFI, and the New Israel Fund. Warnock may
not have been as successful with fundraising if he had maintained his
previous position on Israel.
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Sut Jhally, documentary filmmaker and communications professor at the
University of Massachusetts, Amherst, was surprised at how easily Warnock
caved to pro-Israel pressure.
"He was persuaded by the mainstream Democrats to win the Georgia election,
so he had to make this horrible statement about Israel and BDS," Jhally told
MintPress News.
Warnock and Ossoff ran for Senate on a civil-rights-branded agenda. But for
Jhally, you can't call yourself a progressive if you ignore Palestine.
"The test of whether you're a true progressive is your position on Israel,"
Jhally said. "Because you can't be progressive about everything else and
espouse human rights for everyone else and not espouse human rights for the
Palestinians."
Warnock's swift 180 on Palestine-Israel demonstrates just how strong of a
grip the Israel lobby has on the Democratic Party. While the Trump
administration's policies favorited Israel, the Democratic Party is largely
kept in check with pro-Israel funding.
An analysis by the Washington Report on Middle East Affairs shows the
pro-Israel lobby contributes significantly more money to Democrats than
Republicans. And those campaign funds appear to be doing their job in
scratching both the Democrats' and the lobby's backs. The top recipient of
Israel lobby donations in 2020, President Joe Biden, has made it clear he's
willing to reverse every Trump-era policy except those related to Israel.
Keeping with the status quo
Criticism of Israel is growing louder in the Democratic Party with remarks
from more progressive politicians like Sen. Bernie Sanders, Rep. Ilhan Omar,
and Rep. Rashida Tlaib. And while Professor Jhally agrees there's an
unprecedented divide emerging in the party over Israel, that will only
generate discussion and not substantial policy reform.
"The Israel lobby is still very powerful within both the Republican and
Democratic parties and their role right now is to make sure policy does not
change," Jhally said. "And that is about putting pressure on progressives
and making sure BDS becomes delegitimized."
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With BDS-arguably the best international strategy available to end Israel's
occupation of Palestine-still seen as a dirty word in American politics,
Democrats will likely adhere to the Israel lobby's agenda rather than risk
losing money or being perceived as anti-Israel. And that means sticking with
the status quo in the Democratic establishment: condemning BDS, promising
U.S. aid to Israel, and supporting Israel's right to defend itself against
"terrorists." Just like the self-proclaimed progressive Ossoff did in
cementing his election win.
