PHILADELPHIA — Jamaal Bowman, a candidate in a New York Democratic primary election for Congress, on Friday disqualified himself in the eyes of many pro-Israel voters, when he revealed disingenuous views about Israel in an opinion piece published by The Riverdale Press, a Pulitzer-Prize winning neighborhood weekly.
Bowman, 44, is trying to oust U.S. Rep. Eliot L. Engel in Tuesday’s Democratic primary to represent the district covering the northern Bronx and southern Westchester County in New York. Bowman, who is African-American, is an educator running as a so-called progressive with endorsements from Democratic Sens. Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren. Engel, 73, a 32-year veteran of Congress who is Jewish and an ardent advocate for Israel, has been endorsed by New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo and House leaders Nancy Pelosi, James E. Clyburn and Hakeem Jeffries; the latter two are African-American.
The heavily Democratic district comprises a very diverse population, which includes some of the largest Jewish communities in the nation – such as New Rochelle in Westchester and Riverdale in the Bronx.
Engel’s challenger wants to go further on domestic issues and at first glance holds evenhanded views about the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians until, that is, one unearths two passages buried deep in his commentary. The first passage:
“The uprising we’re witnessing across the country against police violence also makes me empathize with the everyday experience and fear that comes with living under occupation. Just as the police is a violent intimidating force in so many black communities, I can connect to what it feels like for Palestinians to feel the presence of the military in their daily lives in the West Bank.”
He can connect? Does he plan to drive all white Americans into the sea? Into the Atlantic, the Pacific or Lake Michigan? That’s the fate for the Jews sought by many Palestinians. Not all Palestinians, probably, but at least those who control the agenda. Most black people I have known over the years only wanted fair treatment. In fact, no African-American even pushed me into a swimming pool.
This does not excuse any Israeli transgressions, if any pro-Arab accusations are true, but the overriding problem is that the Palestinians have refused to return to the negotiating table – 20 years after Israel offered the Palestinians an independent state which would provide everything they need, if not everything they want. The late Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat rejected the proposal and his successor, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, has not taken it up with Israel in any serious way.
Then Bowman adds: “I also can understand the crushing poverty and deprivation in the Gaza Strip. I believe Palestinians have the same rights to freedom and dignity as my Jewish brothers and sisters. I will fight for their liberation, just as hard as I will for yours.”
Palestinians do deserve “the same rights to freedom and dignity.” On this we agree. Unfortunately, the terrorist group Hamas controls Gaza with the proverbial iron grip. If Bowman “will fight for their liberation,” he will need to drive a tank into Gaza City to rid the people of Hamas. The Israelis have failed miserably to dislodge Hamas or at least influence the leadership to morph into becoming a friendlier neighbor.
Bowman is a longtime educator who founded a middle school in the Bronx, the Cornerstone Academy for Social Action, where he was the founding principal, according to The New York Times. Has this teacher neglected to do his homework, or is he a shill for the Palestinians?
Rabbi Avi Weiss, founding rabbi of the Hebrew Institute of Riverdale, also criticized Bowman in a published commentary in which he stressed that the Palestinians reward terrorism.
Bowman’s campaign follows the success of Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez two years ago in defeating Joseph Crowley in the Democratic primary in their district, which spans parts of Queens and the Bronx. AOC, as Ocasio-Cortez is known, swiftly became a lightning rod for progressive politics when she reached Washington. Forty of her new Democratic colleagues flipped seats in districts held by Republicans, leaving Democrats with control of the House; the number has since been reduced to 38.
I wonder just how much progressives like Bowman and AOC can contribute versus what veteran members of Congress can do. No matter how modest or liberal the legislation, Democrats must consider how any legislative proposal will go over with constituents of representatives who made a Democratic majority possible.
Then the House must send a given bill to the Senate, which is now controlled by the Republicans. GOP senators routinely obstruct or water down legislation that would improve the lives of vulnerable citizens. What happens to legislation from Bowman, AOC and other progressives will hinge on who controls the House, the Senate and the White House next January.
To be fair to Bowman, below are his positions on Israel and anti-Semitism as documented on his campaign website:
“ISRAEL: We must support peace, dignity, and security for all Israelis and Palestinians. I support a two-state solution and believe in democracy and self-determination for the Israeli and Palestinian people. I believe firmly in the right of Israelis to live in safety and peace, free from the fear of violence and terrorism, and support continued U.S. aid to help Israel confront these security challenges. I also believe that Palestinians are entitled to basic human rights, safety from violence, and self-determination in a state of their own. I do not support BDS. These commitments to supporting security and freedom for all are not mutually exclusive, and as a member of Congress, I will support policies that promote the long-term interests of the United States and both peoples.
We must also have honest conversations about our government’s role in enabling the continued occupation of the Palestinian people. Our taxpayer dollars should not be going toward subsidizing settlement expansion, home demolitions, the detention of Palestinian children, or in any way supporting the threatened Israeli “annexation ” of the West Bank. Past presidents like Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush used our financial leverage to promote peace in the region as well. We must ensure that U.S. support is used to address the very real security threats Israel faces, not to entrench the occupation.
Anti-Semitism: The United States has been a welcoming home to Jews, and New York remains the vibrant center of Jewish life in America. Synagogues of all denominations, service agencies, cultural institutions, shops and restaurants. This reality lives in tension with another; Jews and Jewish institutions are too frequent targets of antisemitism and hate.
In the past few years, since (President) Trump was elected, attacks have become more frequent, and more deadly. In 2018, a white nationalist entered the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh and killed 11, wounded 6, in the deadliest antisemitic attack in American history.
New York’s 16th congressional district has large Black, Hispanic, and Jewish communities, but too often we live and learn in isolation. I believe each is at its strongest when it builds bridges and forms alliances across lines of difference. The rise of white nationalism in the United States feeds on fear of “outsiders,” be they immigrants, people of color, Jewish, or all three. I will work to build coalitions across our diverse district to address the threat of antisemitism and white nationalism before it’s too late. We must make sure that we have anti-racist curriculum in our schools to create a flourishing multiracial, multiethnic, and multifaith democracy. We must also make sure that the Department of Justice takes seriously the growing threat of antisemitism, hate crimes, and white supremacist extremism in this country.”
As chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Engel confronted Rep. Ilhan Omar of Minneapolis over her anti-Israel attitudes at the outset of her tenure in 2019 when she was appointed to his committee. He told a Times reporter that he privately warned her that he would not permit some of her “particularly hurtful” comments to be “swept under the rug.”
According to the Times, Engel’s campaign website calls attention to his support for increased funding of public education, $100 billion in new housing, and comprehensive immigration reform. Critics have assailed him for rejecting the Iran nuclear deal five years ago and voting in October 2002 for the forthcoming invasion of Iraq.
“You know, I’m pretty progressive myself,” he said. “I have a progressive record down the line for many years in Congress and I’m proud of my record.”
This race is probably going to be decided by a few hundred votes
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