"The Axios Show": AIPAC part of "oligarchy" hurting the U.S., Sanders says
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Sen. Bernie Sanders blasted AIPAC and Israel's right-wing government, accusing the powerful pro-Israel lobbying group of using billionaires' money to silence U.S. progressives and shield Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over the war in Gaza.
- "What makes AIPAC unique is that they're [an] oligarchy by billionaires ... who fight to maintain the status quo," Sanders (I-Vt.) tells Axios' Alex Thompson on "The Axios Show."
Why it matters: The criticism by Sanders, one of the U.S. Senate's most prominent Jewish voices, reflects a deepening split in the Democratic Party over U.S. support for Israel — and the divide between the party's establishment and progressives like Sanders.
Zoom in: Sanders cast AIPAC as part of a billionaire establishment resistant to fighting poverty in the U.S., and accused the group of weaponizing antisemitism to crush dissent.
- Sanders released a book, "Fight Oligarchy," this week, in which he blasts a wealthy class that controls a significant part of the economic, political and media life in the U.S.
- The democratic socialist who caucuses with Senate Democrats warns that this control prevents Americans from organizing to fight for a more just society.
What they're saying: "AIPAC has been successful over the years in defeating a number of strong members of Congress progressives who basically said what most Americans believe," Sanders said.
- "Maybe there's something wrong [with] giving billions of dollars to the right-wing extremist Netanyahu government in Israel, so that they can kill or injure 10% — 10% — of the population of Gaza."
The other side: "Discriminating against pro-Israel Americans for supporting candidates of their choice is deeply alarming and must be rejected," AIPAC's Marshall Wittmann told Axios in a statement.
- Wittmann said the comments by Sanders were undemocratic and un-American.
- "Our 5 million grassroots members — Democrats, Republicans and Independents — will not be deterred by scurrilous attacks from strengthening the U.S.-Israel partnership, which serves American interests and values."
Context: AIPAC has long been one of D.C.'s most influential political forces on U.S. policy toward Israel.
- It directs millions of dollars into U.S. elections through allied super PACs and has targeted several progressive Democrats who've been critical of Israel.
- The group backs Democrats and Republicans, but has drawn criticism for spending heavily against progressives.
The intrigue: Sanders, 84, told Axios that as a kid, he was excited about the formation of the state of Israel because several family members had been killed in the Holocaust.
- "I'm proudly Jewish, but that does not mean in any way, shape, or form that I will support a right-wing extremist government in Israel that is doing horrific things to the Palestinian people," he said.
- He compared antisemitism to the racism and discrimination seen today against Black Americans, Latinos and LGBTQ people.
