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INSIDE THE ISRAEL LOBBY’S NEW $90 MILLION WAR CHEST  
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Amos Barshad
February 1, 2024
The Lever
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_ Internal AIPAC materials reveal huge gifts from moguls — and the
strategies lobbyists used to score the cash. _

, Carolyn Kaster/AP Photo

 

In the wake of the Oct. 7 attacks on southern Israel, the American
Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) has reaped a $90 million
fundraising haul, according to confidential internal documents
reviewed by _The Lever_. 

Large donations flowed as the influential pro-Israel lobbying group
hosted a remobilized Israeli military official who reassured potential
contributors that the country’s military was doing everything
possible to mitigate civilian casualties in Israel’s ongoing war in
Gaza, according to donor-only meetings reviewed by _The Lever._

From January to September 2023, the non-public documents show that
AIPAC received an average of around $12 million in monthly pledged
donations. By contrast, in October alone, the documents show that
AIPAC received more than triple that amount — more than $40 million
in pledged donations. In the following two months, donors pledged
another nearly $50 million. 

Top benefactors on a list of 2023 donors reviewed by _The Lever_
represent a cross-section of the U.S. elite, including pro sports
teams owners; heads of private equity firms; real estate titans; a
Maryland congressman now running for the U.S. Senate; the former CEO
of Victoria’s Secret; the co-founder of the dance-exercise company
Zumba; and the creator of Squishmallows, the beloved children's toy
[[link removed]]. 

The documents and list were provided by an internal AIPAC source. _The
Lever_ attempted to contact more than 75 of the individuals on the
list of donors. Nine people confirmed to _The Lever_ that they were
AIPAC donors. Six additional individuals were listed as AIPAC board
members in 2013, when the organization publicly disclosed its board
[[link removed]].
Seven other individuals on the list are publicly listed as being
“involved in pro-Israel political giving” on a 2022 organization
event page [[link removed]].

Prior to publication, _The Lever_ showed AIPAC the information
reported in this story. The organization responded with an emailed
statement: “Much of the information here is either misstated,
misinterpreted, inaccurate or illegitimately obtained. Since October
7, there has been a systematic effort by Israel’s detractors to
harass, intimidate and silence supporters of the Jewish state. All
detractors should know that their attacks only increase our
determination to strengthen the US-Israel relationship.”

When _The Lever_ asked AIPAC’s spokesperson to identify any
inaccurate information, the organization did not respond. _The Lever_
followed up three times before publication, but the spokesperson
stopped responding. 

Three individuals named on the list denied being donors. That includes
Leonid Radvinsky, the billionaire owner
[[link removed]] of
OnlyFans, a hugely popular internet platform dominated by sex workers.
According to the internal documents, Radvinsky and his wife, Katie
Chudnovsky, pledged $11 million to AIPAC — the most of anyone
listed. 

“I didn’t donate or pledge $11M,” Radvinsky wrote in an email,
and “this appl[ies] to me / my foundation / my family.” When _The
Lever_ asked Radvinsky why AIPAC had him listed as a donor, Radvinsky
replied, “I don’t know.” When _The Lever_ asked Radvinsky to
comment on internal AIPAC documentation showing a wire transfer from
his wife to AIPAC, Radvinsky stopped responding.

After 1,200 Israelis were killed
[[link removed]]
and 240 others taken hostage in the Oct. 7 attacks, Israel launched a
military offensive in Gaza. Since then, more than 25,000 Palestinians
[[link removed](AP),others%20and%20crushing%20the%20militant]
have been killed, according to the Gaza Health Ministry.

Miri Eisin, a retired but recently-remobilized Israeli colonel and a
longtime AIPAC ally, declared during a donors-only virtual meeting in
December that “Israel has done more than _any_ military _anywhere_
at _any_ time in _any_ war _ever_ to try to save the civilians.” 

“We’re doing everything right,” Eisin added. “We’re trying
to save lives.”

According to military experts cited by _The New York Times_
[[link removed]],
the “pace of death during Israel’s campaign has few precedents in
this century” and people are dying in Gaza faster than “even the
deadliest moments of U.S.-led attacks in Iraq, Syria, and
Afghanistan.” While the majority of the combatants targeted by the
Israeli military are men, nearly 70 percent of the dead
[[link removed]] are women and
children. 

The internal AIPAC information reviewed by _The Lever _constitutes a
rare view inside a well-funded organization that has successfully
pushed the U.S. government towards unconditional support of Israel for
decades — and that is currently using its resources to lobby against
a ceasefire that proponents say would alleviate suffering in Gaza.

AIPAC has already begun using its war chest
[[link removed]]
to influence the 2024 election.

After Rep. Betty McCollum (D-Minn.) spoke in favor of a “negotiated
regional ceasefire,” AIPAC sponsored ads claiming McCollum was
“giving Hamas a lifeline.” AIPAC is attempting to “silence
dissent by spreading lies,” McCollum said in response, adding
“facts don’t matter to AIPAC and its extremist supporters.”
Progressive groups working to oppose AIPAC believe the organization
and its affiliated entities could ultimately spend $100 million
[[link removed]]
in the 2024 cycle. 

In January, Sen. Bernie Sanders (Ind.-Vt.) proposed a resolution
conditioning aid to Israel
[[link removed]]
on the stipulation that the country would not violate human rights and
international law in its attacks on Gaza. In an AIPAC donor-only
meeting reviewed by _The Lever_, AIPAC President Michael Tuchin said
Sanders was attempting to “undermine Israel’s security with a
resolution baselessly accusing Israel of violating international
law.” The attempt failed, garnering support from only 11 Senators. 

In another donor-only meeting reviewed by _The Lever_, AIPAC made its
election strategy clear. During the Nov. 29 event, an attendee asked
AIPAC CEO Howard Kohr, “How do we encourage our members of Congress
to stand up to some of the wildly inaccurate claims coming from the
more pro-Hamas camp?”

“This won’t come as a surprise to anyone,” Kohr answered. “We
are going to have to continue to demonstrate in even more dramatic
ways that if you’re willing to stand with Israel when she’s at war
and she needs America… we’re willing to help [you] politically.”
As to those elected officials trying to “ensure that there’s a
weakening of Israel at this moment,” Kohr said, they will have to be
“defeated at the ballot box.”

WHO ARE AIPAC’S DONORS?

AIPAC is legally designated as a 501(c)4  “social welfare”
organization
[[link removed]].
That means contributions to AIPAC do not have to be made public under
federal disclosure laws. Traditionally, AIPAC has kept the identity of
its biggest donors a closely guarded secret. 

The list of donors that _The Lever_ reviewed offers insight into the
sources of AIPAC’s resources. Most of the pledges on the list ranged
between $100,000 to $200,000. Around 20 were between $500,000 and $2
million. 

One pledge was an outlier at $11 million. The pledge was credited to
“Mr. Anonymous Anonymous” and Katie Chudnovsky. The pledge
contained personal contact information and a short bio that identified
“Mr. Anonymous Anonymous” as Leonid Radvinsky, the “elusive
[[link removed]]” owner of the content
platform OnlyFans. In the March 19, 2009, edition of the _Chicago
Tribune_, Chudnovsky posted an announcement of her wedding to
Radvinsky, writing “we will work hard to enrich our marriage and to
live life with dignity and dedication.” 

In 2018, Radvinsky, a computer programmer and tech investor, purchased
a 75 percent stake in OnlyFans from its original founders and has
since seen the platform boom in popularity
[[link removed]],
fueled in part by increased internet usage during the Covid-19
pandemic. In the 2022 fiscal year, OnlyFans subscribers spent $5.6
billion
[[link removed]]
— and Radvinsky reportedly took in $338 million in dividends. 

OnlyFans, best known for hosting adult content, takes a 20 percent cut
of its creators’ earnings. (Subscription fees range from $4.99 to
$49.99 a month.) Many content creators have become wealthy off their
OnlyFans’ earnings but, as the _Washington Post_ reports
[[link removed]],
the platform “suffers from a problem of incredible pay
inequality.” In 2020, an independent researcher
[[link removed]]
cited by the _Post_ found that “the top 1 percent of accounts made
33 percent of the money, and that most accounts took home less than
$145 a month.” 

Beyond Radvinsky, the list of donors reviewed by _The Lever_ was
dominated by finance and real estate professionals. According to the
list, that includes:

* Daniel Sundheim, founder of the investment firm D1 Capital
Partners, pledged $2 million.
* Milton Cooper, executive chairman of the real estate giant Kimco
Realty, pledged $1 million.
* Tony Ressler, co-founder of the asset management firm Ares and
owner of the Atlanta Hawks, pledged $1 million.
* Jonathan Gray, president of Blackstone Group, the world’s
largest private equity firm
[[link removed]],
pledged $1 million. In an internal email sent to employees of
Blackstone Group days after Oct. 7 and obtained by eJewishPhilanthropy
[[link removed]],
Gray and Blackstone CEO Stephen Schwartzman wrote, “We will be there
for [Israel] throughout this crisis. The Blackstone Charitable
Foundation will be making a $3 million contribution to support
humanitarian relief efforts. Additionally, we are each committing $1
million personally and other senior partners have already generously
committed approximately $2 million.” In 2021, BlackStone opened an
office
[[link removed]]
in Israel to tap into the country’s tech industry. The head of the
office, a former Israeli Defense Ministry lieutenant, told
[[link removed]]
_The Times of Israel _that “All of a sudden Israel is ripe enough to
be a relevant partner for an entity like Blackstone.”
* Josh Harris, co-founder of the private equity firm Apollo Global
Management and co-owner of the Philadelphia 76ers, the New Jersey
Devils, and the Washington Commanders, pledged $500,000.
* Lloyd Blankfein, former CEO and current senior chairman of the
investment bank Goldman Sachs, pledged $100,000.

Aside from finance and real estate, the list was an eclectic mix of
powerful Americans. 

* Julie Platt, chair of the prominent Jewish Federations of North
America and the actor Ben Platt’s mother, pledged $500,000.
* Shlomo Rechnitz, reportedly California’s largest nursing-home
operator
[[link removed]],
pledged $260,000. Last year, Rechnitz agreed to a settlement after
being indicted on charges of Medicare fraud
[[link removed]].
* Judd Zebersky — founder of the toy company Jazwares, which makes
the TikTok-beloved Squishmallows and claims
[[link removed]] “putting a smile on children’s
faces is at the heart of everything we do”  — pledged $250,000.
In a LinkedIn post immediately following Oct. 7, Zebersky wrote
[[link removed]],
“Remember that Israel is fighting for its very existence. This is
hitting close to home for many Jazmanians.” 
* Mark Penn, a long-time political operative, pledged $100,000. Penn
is the CEO of the Stagwell Group, which owns
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the political consulting firm co-founded
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by President Biden’s senior adviser Anita Dunn. As _Semafor _has
reported, recent polling done by a company owned by Stagwell has
indicated widespread support from Americans for Hamas. That polling
has been covered by media outlets around the world despite glaring
indications that its methodology is deeply flawed
[[link removed]]. 
* Leslie Wexner, former CEO of Victoria’s Secret, pledged
$100,000.
* Alberto Perlman, co-founder of Zumba, pledged $100,000.

Reached via email, Tony Ressler declined to confirm or deny the
information, writing, “Don’t want to be rude but please do as you
wish... I don’t know you or your publication or organization...
wishing you all the best.” The other individuals named above did not
respond to multiple requests for comment. 

One of the most prominent names on the list is Rep. David Trone
(D-Md.), the owner of a massive liquor-store chain who is now running
for a U.S. Senate seat. Trone has been an on-the-record AIPAC
supporter
[[link removed]]
for years. According to the list of AIPAC donors reviewed by _The
Lever,_ Trone pledged $100,000 last year. A Trone campaign
spokesperson confirmed to _The Lever_ that Trone was a “Minyan
member”-level donor in 2023. “Minyan member
[[link removed]]” is AIPAC’s term for donors who
pledge an annual sum of $100,000. (In Judaism, a “minyan” is the
quorum of worshippers required for communal prayer.)

Trone is seeing AIPAC support come back to him: Over the current 2024
election cycle, he’s already received $105,600
[[link removed]]
from donors via the AIPAC PAC. (During a town hall with voters, Trone
also recently expressed impromptu support for a ceasefire
[[link removed]]
in Gaza.)

Individuals on the list who confirmed to _The Lever_ they were AIPAC
donors mostly explained their support for the organization in ways
that mirrored AIPAC’s own messaging.

Richard Thalheimer, founder of home electronics company Sharper Image,
pledged $100,000 in 2023. Thalheimer told _The Lever_ that he’s
donated at Minyan level for years “and some years have been
higher.”

He added, “AIPAC is doing an outstanding job of getting our
policymakers and Congress members to visit Israel and understand what
is really going on. These educational visits then support policy and
funding decisions, which strengthen our bond with Israel” and
“ensure continuous funding and technology sharing for mutual
defense. Oct. 7 motivated me, and should motivate everyone who
supports democracy, to give additional funding to AIPAC and Israel.”

Ken Alterman, former CEO of the thrift store chain Savers, Inc., also
pledged $100,000, according to the list reviewed by _The Lever._
Alterman did not confirm the size of his donation amount but did
identify himself as a donor, adding “I support the mission. Building
U.S. and Israeli relations — I’m grateful that happens.” 

Jacob Klein, a New Jersey real estate developer listed as a $100,000
donor on the list, confirmed that he was a Minyan member, and said he
donates that amount annually. AIPAC is “a very important
organization and I value their work a great deal,” he told _The
Lever._ He added that since Oct. 7, he’s “more motivated so I’m
gonna do more.”

Paul Burg, the 90-year-old founder of the drug ingredients
manufacturer Spectrum Chemicals, spoke more emotionally when reached
for comment. Burg lived through Nazi control in a Jewish ghetto in
modern-day Ukraine during World War II. He confirmed being an AIPAC
donor, although he denied the amount ascribed to him on the list of
donors reviewed by _The Lever_ — $150,000 — and declined to
specify the amount of his 2023 donation. 

“Now is not the time to criticize Israel,” he said. “Israel has
suffered tremendous damage not only from its enemies but also from its
so-called friends. AIPAC is very important for Israel and the Jews in
general — the people who want to destroy Israel intend to destroy
the Jews from everywhere. It doesn’t stop with the Jews from
America.”  

“I will give my life for Israel,” Burg added, “and I never lived
in Israel!”

HOW AIPAC WORKS

The organization that came to be known as AIPAC was formed in the
mid-1950s in the wake of an Israeli massacre. In retaliation to a
grenade attack that killed a mother and her two children, the Israeli
army killed more than 60 civilians in the West Bank village of Qibya.
I.L. Kenen, an influential political operator and the father of AIPAC,
created the organization out of his concern that Qibya would damage
“our propaganda
[[link removed]].”

In the decades since, AIPAC has advocated for American support of
Israeli governments. One of the only exceptions came in the early
nineties, during the 1993 Oslo Accords
[[link removed]] peace process
between Israel and Palestine. While AIPAC officially supported the
accords, one former AIPAC analyst has said that behind the scenes the
organization worked to “cripple Oslo
[[link removed]].”

Doug Rossinow, a professor at Minnesota’s Metro State University and
the author of the forthcoming book, _Promised Land: The Worlds of
American Zionism_, says AIPAC has long managed a “balancing act.”
On one hand: “Thwarting efforts to achieve peaceful coexistence
between Jews and Palestinians in the Middle East.” On the other:
“Retaining an identity as an establishment consensus group.” 

AIPAC does so largely by funneling money and support to both Democrats
and Republicans. 

As a 501(c)(4) organization
[[link removed]],
AIPAC legally cannot have politics as its “primary purpose
[[link removed]].”
But it still has wide latitude to impact elections in a variety of
ways. That includes buying ads boosting or decrying candidate (like
the ones it ran attacking McCollum); cultivating pro-Israel candidates
and elected officials through its trips to the country; and informally
steering generous pro-Israel donors
[[link removed]]
to AIPAC-friendly candidates. 

In the 2022 election cycle, for the first time, AIPAC launched two
other entities
[[link removed]]
to expand its political operations. One was a traditional political
action committee, the AIPAC PAC [[link removed]], which can
solicit an unlimited number of individual donations (capped at $3,300
per donor per election) to pass on to political candidates. The
organization also
[[link removed]]
established an affiliated super PAC
[[link removed]],
the United Democracy Project, which can spend unlimited amounts of
money to support or oppose a candidate in an election. As a super PAC,
the United Democracy Project [[link removed]]
can’t give directly to candidates or parties — but its donors
aren’t constrained by contribution limits. 

In the 2022 election cycle, the United Democracy Project spent more
than $26 million
[[link removed]].
Outside of the party committees themselves, it was the tenth biggest
outside spender [[link removed]]. The
money was largely spent on mailers and TV ads to quash progressive
Democrats critical of the Israeli government
[[link removed]].
Of that amount, $10.5 million came from AIPAC
[[link removed]]
— but federal records do not include disclosures of the specific
donors who originally contributed the money to AIPAC. 

HOW AIPAC TALKS TO ITS DONORS

Outside of the organization’s high-profile annual conference
[[link removed]],
AIPAC officials seldom speak publicly
[[link removed]]. In
donor-only virtual events reviewed by _The Lever_, the
organization’s chief executives spoke at length about the
organization’s strategies. 

On Nov. 29, AIPAC hosted a meeting, “Live From Israel: A
Conversation With AIPAC Leadership,” featuring AIPAC President
Michael Tuchin and Howard Kohr, its CEO. Placed on a glass table in
front of them was an AIPAC coffee mug holding one little American flag
and one little Israeli flag. 

Tuchin spoke briefly about an incident
[[link removed]]
that had occurred a few days prior: a protest at his home in the
Brentwood neighborhood of Los Angeles. Referring to the protestors as
“pro-Hamas vandals,” Tuchin explained they were “blasting
sirens, beating drums,” and throwing “baby body bags covered with
blood around our house.” 

Then, to spotlight support that AIPAC has from the political
establishment, Tuchin ticked off the messages of support he received
from prominent figures after the protest. “The second gentleman,”
Douglass Emhoff, “called. The acting governor of California. The
mayor of Los Angeles called several times. Many Senators. Members of
Congress. Ambassadors.” 

Next, Kohr and Tuchin brought up their current focus: fighting a
“premature” ceasefire. 

“Israelis, we believe, will make clear that they are doing
_remarkable_ things to minimize civilian casualties,” Kohr said.
“But we have to remind members of the Senate and the House that the
very strategy of Hamas — the predicate of their strategy — is that
they have built an entire civilian infrastructure upon their military
and terror capabilities.” 

“It’s not possible to meet the objectives without some civilian
casualties,” Kohr added. “This is not going to be pretty… the
line between civilian and terrorist — and it does exist — is very
difficult in Gaza.” 

Tuchin suggested that it could have been an AIPAC delegation — and,
possibly, an acting U.S. lawmaker — killed on Oct. 7. 

“I’ve been to Kfar Aza twice this year with delegations,” he
said, referring to one of the sites of the Hamas-led attacks. “With
29 members of Congress. We stood steps away from where Hamas attackers
murdered people in cold blood. It really hit home.” 

In other meetings, Tuchin underscored similar sentiments about the
vulnerability of all Jewish people. In one, he hailed the Israeli
military as a great transnational protector: it’s “for all of us
around the globe that the IDF,” the Israeli Defence Forces, “is
fighting.” In another, he said that Hezbollah, the Houthis, and
other Iranian proxies have consistently confirmed “their intentions
to murder as many Israelis and Jews as possible.” 

In the December meeting where Eisin, the Israeli colonel, claimed
“We’re trying to save lives,” speakers echoed the idea that any
member of the extended AIPAC network or their families could just as
likely have been the victims of the Oct. 7 attacks. 

“It could have been my parents,” Eisin said. “It could have been
my children.” 

The moderator, AIPAC Educational Seminar Leader Renee Sharon, quickly
interjected. “I want to say, Miri — it  could have been one of
our AIEF groups.” AIEF, or the American Israel Education Foundation,
is an affiliate AIPAC organization [[link removed]]
that leads Congressmembers on tours of Israel. “All of the times
that we’ve been down there,” in the south of Israel near the Gaza
border. “It could have been _any of us_.”

In a Dec. 21 donor meeting, the special guest was Yaakov Katz, former
editor-in-chief of _The_ _Jerusalem Post_. 

“A lot of people love to play the numbers game,” he said early in
the meeting. “20,000 dead.” (That was roughly the estimated
civilian casualty total at the time Katz was speaking. It’s
currently at more than 25,000
[[link removed].].)
“Well, look at the fact that we’re looking at 6, 7,000 terrorists
[killed] and we’re looking at a ratio of combatant to civilian of
one to two” he noted. (Per Katz’s own numbers, the ratio would be
closer to one alleged member of Hamas killed for every three
civilians.) 

“One to two is actually quite good when you think about the combat
zone, the density, the urban terrain,” Katz added. “While it does
look like there’s a lot of devastation and destruction inside the
Gaza Strip, [the Israeli military] is operating with a lot of
precision.” 

Then he switched gears, to talk about how the Israeli military “in
the last sixty days or so has really reclaimed its glory of being an
aggressive and effective ground force.” 

On Jan. 18, Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) and Sen. John Cornyn
(R-Texas) joined a donors-only meeting, “From The Frontlines To
Capitol Hill.” When asked to explain why Sen. Sanders and other
Congressmembers have criticized Israel’s war tactics, Gillibrand
credited bad intelligence. 

As a member of the Intelligence and Armed Services Committees,
Gillibrand explained, she receives regular briefings on Israeli
military strategy that include “how many innocent civilians
they’re willing to accept in their targeting” which has convinced
her that Israel follows “all of the humanitarian agreements” in a
“thoughtful, methodical way.” Meanwhile, her colleagues don’t
have “access to that information, and so they’re left with
misinformation from their constituents.” As to the source of
misinformation, she identified “TikTok and China and Russia and our
other adversaries.” 

“We’re losing the communications war,” she added, to
“absolutely horrific rhetoric against Israel, accusing [the country]
of genocide, accusing them of occupation, accusing them of white
supremacy. It’s beyond recognition. There is no truth in those
narratives.” 

Addressing widespread calls for a ceasefire, Gillibrand conceded that
some of the people calling for one are doing so “because they want
innocent lives to be protected,” then added “but they may not
understand that if you call for a ceasefire, you can’t get the
hostages back.” 

Since Oct. 7, the Israeli military has rescued one hostage
[[link removed]]
and accidentally killed at least
[[link removed]]
three others
[[link removed]].
During a seven-day pause in the fighting in November
[[link removed]],
more than 100 hostages were released. Gadi Eiskenot, a member of
Israel’s five-man war cabinet, recently told Israel’s Channel 12
[[link removed]],
“it is impossible to bring the hostages back alive in the near
future without a deal” and that those who suggest otherwise are
“feeding lies to the public.” Negotiations are currently ongoing
[[link removed]]
for a deal in which the remaining hostages will be released partially
in exchange for a two-month ceasefire. 

At the close of the January AIPAC meeting, Cornyn was asked what his
personal message was to Israel. “Don’t give up hope,” he said.
“We are there with you. We are inseparable. And Israel’s future is
really the United State’s future.”

“YOU’RE ALL MOBILIZED, TOO” 

While AIPAC has told its donors that Israel is minimizing civilian
casualties, critics of the country’s military argue such claims are
not credible. Paul Rogers is a Professor of Peace Studies at Bradford
University. “One percent of all Gazans have been killed in the space
of three months,” he said. “That is an incredible intensity of
death.” 

In January, the International Court of Justice ordered Israel
[[link removed]]
to “take all measures within its power to prevent the commission”
of genocide. The ruling came as a result of a petition brought by
South Africa accusing Israel of genocide. 

Adila Hassim, the lawyer representing South Africa, argued that
[[link removed]]
the “level of Israel’s killing is so extensive that nowhere is
safe in Gaza.” Civilians “have been killed if they failed to
evacuate, in the places to which they have fled, and even while they
attempted to flee along Israeli-declared safe routes,” she added.
Beyond the military tactics, she noted that civilians are now dying by
“starvation, dehydration, and disease.” 

According to the Israeli human-rights organization B’Tselem
[[link removed]], Israel is
overseeing the creation of a famine by refusing to allow necessary
food supplies to enter Gaza via aid trucks in the wake of the
widespread destruction of fields, factories, and warehouses. In what
may be a drastic undercount
[[link removed]],
the World Health Organization is estimating that there are more than
400,000 cases
[[link removed]]
of infectious diseases in Gaza. 

Eva Borgwardt, the spokesperson for the American Jewish
anti-occupation group IfNotNow, hopes that AIPAC’s support of Israel
in the wake of the Gaza crisis will create an inflection point in the
lobbying group’s relationship with the Democratic Party.
“AIPAC’s dangerous aim is to convince people that their basic
values — equality, freedom, the value of human life — should not
apply to the Palestinian people,” she said. 

Democrats, Borgwardt argues, have a chance now “to renounce AIPAC,
uphold the value that all human life is precious, and say that no more
U.S. weapons should go to this Israeli government’s horrific assault
on Palestinian life.” 

But so far, outside of pushback from a minority, the Democratic Party
has remained as stalwart as the GOP in its support of Israel. And for
AIPAC, whose mission it is to bolster American support for Israel,
these are boom times. In the face of the ongoing military assault on
Gaza, AIPAC has a compelling narrative to push on its donors.

During the December donor-only meeting, before signing off, Col. Miri
Eisin was asked one more question. “What can we do to help Israel
now? What does Israel need from us?”

“You’re listening, you’re engaged, you’re calling, you’re
doing what you’re doing in the United States,” Eisin said.
“That’s what we need. We need that backing. We can’t be alone.
This shouldn’t be Israel alone and it isn’t — because of
you.” 

She added that after Oct. 7, she was mobilized by the Israeli
military, as was her husband and all three of her children. Just that
day, the five of them were altogether, all back in their military
uniforms, and took photos to commemorate the moment. 

And through their support for AIPAC, Eisin told the donors,
“You’re all mobilized, too.”

Sign up for The Lever’s free newsletter and get original
investigative reporting in your inbox every weekday.

* AIPAC
[[link removed]]
* Israeli lobby
[[link removed]]

*
[[link removed]]
*
[[link removed]]
*
*
[[link removed]]

 

 

 

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