A Democratic National Committee member says she will introduce a resolution rejecting AIPAC spending at this month’s DNC meeting.
“At a time when Democratic voters might really not have felt represented or seen when it came to Gaza or seeing their party support Palestinian rights or stand against military conflict, this could be one step toward bringing those voters back into the party,” the committee member, Allison Minnerly, told The Intercept’s Matt Sledge.
“Given the recent primaries in Illinois, but also what we’ve seen across the country, I think it’s important that we specify that AIPAC as a growing force in our primaries needs to be specifically addressed when we talk about dark money,” she added.
If Minnerly’s name rings a bell, it might be because she introduced Resolution 18 last year. It called for a ceasefire in Gaza, suspension of U.S. military aid to Israel, and recognition of Palestinian statehood. Her effort was ultimately watered down, then unceremoniously dismissed at the DNC’s summer meeting in Minnesota.
“The fight over Resolution 18 was more than a simple vote over a symbolic resolution. The story shows how the Israel lobby is doing all it can to prevent Democratic Party leadership from honoring the overwhelming will of party members. It also is a harbinger of fights to come, as support for Palestine only continues to grow in the party in reaction to Israel’s genocide in Gaza,” wrote Nadia Ahmad at Mondoweiss at the time.
The same is true this time around.
The new resolution is also symbolic, but it gets Democrats on the record regarding a lobbying group that has already become a hot-button issue among presidential hopefuls.
One such example is Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, who is attempting to distance himself from past AIPAC connections based on the direction of the political winds.
“It became an organization that was supporting Donald Trump and people who follow Donald Trump,” Pritzker declared after the group spent heavily in Illinois’s recent primaries. “AIPAC really is not an organization that I think today I would want any part of.”
A spokesperson for the Governor reiterated that Pritzker “withdrew his support” from the group after it “became a pro-Trump organization.”
Hellbound and Down 