Kiss Of Death— Like It Was For Eileen Filler-Corn?
Let me get back to a topic we’ve been exploring lately— the idea of AIPAC-DMFI and the whole pro-genocide lobby becoming a kiss of death in Democratic politics. As we saw, the DMFI-backed congressional candidate in Virginia, Eileen Filler-Corn, once the front-runner, went straight downhill after her involvement with the pro-genocide lobby became public. On Tuesday, she didn’t just lose, she came in a distant 4th!
One day I hope to be writing how that is becoming a common occurrence. But DMFI and AIPAC have a tendency to endorse many frontrunners so they can glomm onto their success. Yesterday I saw a report from the Jewish Insider, which seems more in cahoots with DMFI, than any other publication, that the pro-genocide group has endorsed in 3 more congressional primaries. Two of the candidates are conservatives. One, Yassamin Ansari is just not as progressive as her main opponent, Raquel Terán. The other two, though… as bad as it gets for a Democrat. Rebecca Cook (WI) has already been fully absorbed into the failing right-of-center Blue Dog Coalition. And, as we noted recently, Long Island Republican John Avlon, is pretending to be a Democrat so he can run in a Long Island GOP-occupied swing district.
A former long-time Rudy Giuliani speech-writer, Daily Beast columnist and CNN commentator, Avlon once asked Will More Democrats Follow Rahm Emanuel in Chicago and Take On Unions? Yep… a union hating Democrat running for Congress in New York. He was urging more Democrats to follow Emanuel’s lead and declare independence from labor unions. Avlon was all excited about sending unions a new message, “that it’s a new day.”
His anti-union perspective isn’t the only 3-alarm fire warning us that if he gets into Congress we’ll have another Kyrsten Sinema/Joe Manchin to contend with. “The other area where good policy requires political courage is pension reform,” he wrote using the one-dimensional conservative framing that is his trademark. He’s always most comfortable when, like Emanuel, he’s attacking progressives. “Union rhetoric,” he sneered, “in the face of attempts to take on these issues can sometimes go beyond tough talk in defense of self-interest to the dishonest and demagogic. One example occurred when Chicago Teachers Union Delegate Jay Rehak told Erin Burnett on CNN’s OutFront that ‘the mayor has an active attempt to destroy schools and destroy communities’ and accused him— Emanuel— of ‘attacking the middle class since he got in.’… In New Jersey, Governor Chris Christie [another Avlon role model and hero] proved that he could take on the public sector unions and win the fight in the court of public opinion, closing budget gaps without raising taxes and gaining significant concessions on teacher tenure reforms. The sometimes ugly union protests were not successful in demonizing him among the independents who outnumber registered Democrats or Republicans in the Garden State. Even Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker [the third in Avlon’s years-long quartet of worshipped conservative heroes, the4th being Paul Ryan], who quickly proved more clumsy and polarizing than Christie, survived a recall attempt by a larger number of votes than he was initially elected with, despite an existential full court press by labor unions.”
…After working as the Giuliani campaign’s speech writer—and before he helped found No Labels— he worked at the right-wing think tank, the Manhattan Institute. Now’s he’s tried to backtrack… So voters have no way of knowing what he stands for and how he will vote if he gets elected.
The incumbent, Republican Nick LaLota, who is at least honest enough to admit he’s a Republican, has been endorsed by DMFI’s genocidal partner, AIPAC. So by endorsing Avlon, the genocidists are playing both sides of coin— heads, you get genocide; tails, you get genocide.
Yesterday, Matthew Kassel reported, “exclusively,” that DMFI had also endorsed “Cooke, a small business owner running to unseat Rep. Derrick Van Orden (R-WI) in western Wisconsin.” Again— playing both sides of the genocidal coin. The crackpot GOP incumbent, Derrick Van Orden, has been endorsed by AIPAC, which has already funneled $50,000 into his campaign. Kassel also noted that “For her part, Cooke, backed by J Street as well as the Jewish Democratic Council of America, is facing off in an August primary against a top rival, state Rep. Kristina Shankland, who claims support from Rep. Mark Pocan (D-WI), an outspoken critic of Israel.”
Blue America is behind the progressive in the race, Eric Wilson. (Please consider contributing to his campaign here or here.) On Monday, WisPolitics reported that “Back in January, Wilson called an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in the ongoing conflict in Gaza following the October 7th attack. Wilson aims to encourage a diplomatic solution that respects the rights and safety of all involved… ‘The atrocities and genocide happening in Gaza can not be ignored and I am disappointed in my Democratic opponent’s silence on this issue. We may be walking into more global conflicts and we cannot afford to have silence. I will not stay silent as your representative and I will fight for what is right.’”
Yesterday, Wilson told us that “When you are called to serve, you serve everyone. That means stepping up when your constituents ask you to. I called for a ceasefire in January and continue to be an advocate for a permanent ceasefire. I am the only Democratic candidate in my race to make this statement. A professor from Stevens Point, who is Palestinian, has been pleading with my Democratic opponents to make a statement and they refuse to respond to her. I will not stand silent. On Monday of this week I spoke at the Stevens Point city council meeting where they took up a ceasefire resolution. It passed unanimously. It's clear that the other candidates are out of touch with the will of the people in the district. I will continue to fight to represent everyone.”
It’s worth noting that the potential spoiler in the race, Katrina Shankland— who, like Cooke, refuses to denounce genocide— represents Stevens Point in the Assembly. Wilson has bene endorsed by several members of the Stevens Point City Council.
Genocidal maniac Mark Mellman, DMFI’s chairman and AIPAC’s strategist, described the endorsees to Kassel “as ‘three promising Democratic candidates from wildly different backgrounds vying to represent three wildly different districts who are united in their commitment to the Democratic agenda, including strong support for the U.S.-Israel relationship. These pro-Israel candidates are playing a crucial role in maintaining our party’s support for the U.S.-Israel alliance and in retaking the House majority from extreme MAGA Republicans,’ Mellman added. DMFI PAC also claimed in its announcement that the three candidates are all ‘facing Democratic primary opponents who would not be pro-Israel champions in Congress,’ but did not elaborate further.”
Avlon, the pro-genocide candidate in Suffolk County, is facing off against Nancy Goroff, a Jewish Democrat who is endorsed by J Street, and has a more mainstream point of view about Israel that is shared by the vast majority of Americans.
A couple weeks back I received an envelope asking for a donation from Rebecca Cooke. I threw it away unopened because of DWT. Glad I did now. I am a resident of Madison, in Dane County Wisconsin, Mark Pocan is my Congressional Representative.
It's a mild relief that 55% opposed war crimes in Gaza in March. I hope that it's up to at least around 60% by now.
I confess that MSDNC has yet to offer me a contract to serve as an on-air commentator. I do, however, understand that a president (whose poll #s were already shaky) resolutely supporting a highly unpopular and a highly visible policy is not a wise political move.
Dems are risking 237 years of representative government so that Biden & Blinken can save Bibi's butt. Schumer and Jeffries are totally down with it.
Even by the donkey's already low standards, that may be the ultimate low.