The American Israel Public Affairs Committee has intensified its campaign against “Squad” House Democrat Jamaal Bowman (D-NY), releasing an ad featuring the son of renowned Holocaust survivor and author Elie Wiesel.
"Will you make your voice heard?
Will you confront @JamaalBowmanNY lies and conspiracy theories?
Or will you sit by silenty?"
–@ElishaWiesel pic.twitter.com/0oIA0CzTHH— United Democracy Project (@UnitedDemocProj) May 31, 2024
In the ad, which encourages voters to participate in New York’s June 25 primary, Elisha Wiesel warned that Bowman’s critical stance on Israel could lead to a scenario similar to what his father experienced. The video began by mourning the Hamas attack on Israel on Oct. 7, which resulted in 1,200 Israeli deaths within a few hours.
“Now we must ask who each of us are in this moment,” Wiesel stated. “Who are the anti-Semites engaged in falsely accusing Israel of genocide? Who stands up to oppose them, and who stands by silently? We know where Jamaal Bowman stands.”
“He co-sponsored a resolution calling the founding of Israel a ‘catastrophe,'” Wiesel continued. “He voted against condemning Hamas’s brutal attack, and Jamaal Bowman repeated Hamas lies, denying that women were raped and babies were butchered.”
“My father taught that anti-Semitism begins with lies and conspiracy theories, and it ends with violence that consumes any society that tolerates it,” Wiesel concluded. “So I ask you, will you stand up to Jamaal Bowman’s lies and conspiracy theories? Or will you sit by silently?”
The ad was produced by AIPAC’s super PAC, United Democracy Project, which has invested heavily in targeting anti-Israel Democrats in their primaries this election season. Bowman has become one of their primary targets, having established himself as one of the House Democrats most critical of Israel.
The ad-tracking firm AdImpact found that AIPAC has spent $8 million on TV ads to challenge Bowman, Politico reported.
Bowman’s campaign directed the media outlet to Sophie Ellman-Golan, the communications director for Jews for Racial and Economic Justice, who defended the New York Democrat as a “leader for decades in fighting antisemitism and all forms of hate, as a principal and in Congress. Democratic voters won’t let these ugly smear attacks from Republican-funded AIPAC divide us.”
Truth Voices reached out to Bowman for a comment.
Elie Wiesel, Elisha Wiesel’s father, is the author of one of the most famous works of Holocaust literature, Night, which partially recounts his experiences in Auschwitz. After the war, he became a passionate supporter of Israel, including voicing support for more controversial Israeli actions such as expanding Jewish settlements into Palestinian territory. He condemned Hamas during the 2014 Gaza War and criticized then-President Barack Obama for opposing Jewish settlement construction in East Jerusalem.
Despite easily winning his 2020 and 2022 House primaries, Bowman has emerged as one of the most vulnerable “Squad” members due to his criticism of Israel during the War in Gaza.
A March FiveThirtyEight poll found him trailing primary challenger Westchester County Executive George Latimer by 17 points. Bowman’s approval rating has dropped to 36%, compared to Latimer’s 68% approval rating.
