New York Congressman Backed By The Squad Loses In Primary

[esmith]

Progressive Rep. Jamaal Bowman, D-N.Y., looks to suffer a primary defeat Tuesday to a moderate challenger George Latimer. What does this signal for the progressive left of the Democratic Party?

Rep. Jamaal Bowman, a vocal Israel critic and 'squad' member, loses primary

NBC News projects Westchester County Executive George Latimer defeated Bowman after a bitter and expensive Democratic race in New York’s 16th District.

www.nbcnews.com

 

[Jayhawker Soule]

Good riddance. See Politico's Bowman reverses after calling reports of Oct. 7 sexual assaults 'propaganda'

 

[Lyndon]

Right wing Jews spended him out, now even the left wing Jews are against progressives

 

[Jayhawker Soule]

Right wing Jews spended him out, ...

All that Jew-money ...

(Where have we heard that trope before?)

 

[Lyndon]

All that Jew-money ...

(Where have we heard that trope before?)

You know full well that AIPAC poured huge amounts of money into that race yet you would rather believe lies, its like you believe Jews can do no wrong and when atrocities are pointed out to you you defend them and accuse us of being anti semites for noticing

 

[Debater Slayer]

ABC News notes the following:

The American Israel Public Affairs Committee’s political action committee spent nearly $15 million on the primary, filling airwaves and mailboxes with negative ads in an effort to unseat Bowman, who has accused the influential pro-Israel lobbying group of trying to buy the race.

“The outcome in this race once again shows that the pro-Israel position is both good policy and good politics — for both parties," the American Israel Public Affairs Committee said in a statement.

On Israel, both Bowman and Latimer support a two-state solution. They have also both condemned Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on southern Israel that killed around 1,200 people. But Bowman was one of a few progressives who rejected a symbolic House resolution in support of Israel following the Oct. 7 attack. Latimer firmly backs Israel and said negotiating a cease-fire with Hamas is a non-starter because he believes it is a terrorist group.

George Latimer, a pro-Israel centrist, defeats Rep. Jamaal Bowman in New York Democratic primary

George Latimer has defeated U.S. Rep. Jamaal Bowman, of New York, in a Democratic primary that highlighted the party’s deep divisions over the war in Gaza

abcnews.go.com

George Latimer supports Israel's actions in Gaza and opposes ceasefire negotiations despite over 37,000 Palestinian deaths and over 70,000 injuries. His position has zero moral high ground on support for terrorism and mass murder—he is merely supporting a systemic form of the latter.

It is also interesting that the Democratic Party is apparently accepting of AIPAC's lobbying for the interests of Israel—a foreign country to the US—while sounding alarm bells about the same, whether perceived or real, from actors influenced by Russia and China.

 

[PureX]

Progressive Rep. Jamaal Bowman, D-N.Y., looks to suffer a primary defeat Tuesday to a moderate challenger George Latimer. What does this signal for the progressive left of the Democratic Party?

Nothing. It dignsls nothing for the party.

 

[Stevicus]

Progressive Rep. Jamaal Bowman, D-N.Y., looks to suffer a primary defeat Tuesday to a moderate challenger George Latimer. What does this signal for the progressive left of the Democratic Party?

Rep. Jamaal Bowman, a vocal Israel critic and 'squad' member, loses primary

NBC News projects Westchester County Executive George Latimer defeated Bowman after a bitter and expensive Democratic race in New York’s 16th District.

www.nbcnews.com

It signals that the Democratic Party is divided, as they always have been.

 

[Debater Slayer]

It signals that the Democratic Party is divided, as they always have been.

I'm far less interested in what this says about the Democratic Party than it may say about the priorities and voting values of a portion of Democratic voters.

How many voters are okay with rallying behind a representative who endorses massacres that have led to an ongoing ICJ case, a request for ICC arrest warrants, and condemnation from a vast number of human rights organizations around the world? And how many of them see him as a "lesser evil" as opposed to being okay with what he stands for?

 

[wellwisher]

It signals that the Democratic Party is divided, as they always have been.

What had united the opposing factions within the DNC, was the hate Trump propaganda. This created a war time mode, where enemies became allies, which then gave more credibility to the far Left. The far Left does not mind playing dirty, with playing dirty appearing necessary under the circumstances of a war, albeit, created by disinformation. Russian collusion scam fooled the base and made it rabid.

But the far Left went too far under Biden and messed things up, for even the more moderate Democrats; inflation, high gas and food prices, increasing mortgage rates, over valued real estate near a tipping point, Lots of unused commercial real estate, now costly wars, huge national debt, illegal immigration, increased crime, soft on crime legal system, unless it is Trump. The is also all the lies and intrigue that are coming to the surface from the House Investigations. The Biden Family Influence Peddling Business, Social media Censorrship. Now the Radial Left has even added kangaroo courts like a third world country. There is now a push back toward the center; normalcy instead of lunacy; get rid of the evil empire; swamp backed goons.

Trump is gaining traction in swing states, because although many people may not like the Trump the man, he was an effective President who worked to help both parties with a good economy, no wars, tax breaks, jobs, controlled immigration, etc. The real problem was the war drum beat from the radial left and swamp, based on disinformation and intrigue. It now harder for the moderates ro fight a righteous war when you start to learn this was created by crooks in your own party, to gain power, at the expense of its own base. Blacks, Hispanics and even Jews are moving toward Trump, since the radical Left has too much power, and is being selfish to its own agenda, even at the expense of the moderate base.

 

[Kathryn]

ABC News notes the following:

George Latimer, a pro-Israel centrist, defeats Rep. Jamaal Bowman in New York Democratic primary

George Latimer has defeated U.S. Rep. Jamaal Bowman, of New York, in a Democratic primary that highlighted the party’s deep divisions over the war in Gaza

abcnews.go.com

George Latimer supports Israel's actions in Gaza and opposes ceasefire negotiations despite over 37,000 Palestinian deaths and over 70,000 injuries. His position has zero moral high ground on support for terrorism and mass murder—he is merely supporting a systemic form of the latter.

It is also interesting that the Democratic Party is apparently accepting of AIPAC's lobbying for the interests of Israel—a foreign country to the US—while sounding alarm bells about the same, whether perceived or real, from actors influenced by Russia and China.

Well, for the record, we have killed over 400,000 civilians in the middle east since 9/11. This is not counting other deaths.

Human Costs of U.S. Post-9/11 Wars: Direct War Deaths in Major War Zones | Figures | Costs of War

The Costs of War Project is a team of 35 scholars, legal experts, human rights practitioners, and physicians, which began its work in 2011. We use research and a public website to facilitate debate about the costs of the post-9/11 wars in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Pakistan.

watson.brown.edu

 

[Stevicus]

I'm far less interested in what this says about the Democratic Party than it may say about the priorities and voting values of a portion of Democratic voters.

How many voters are okay with rallying behind a representative who endorses massacres that have led to an ongoing ICJ case, a request for ICC arrest warrants, and condemnation from a vast number of human rights organizations around the world? And how many of them see him as a "lesser evil" as opposed to being okay with what he stands for?

To answer the question of how many voters, it's around 58% of the Democratic voters in this primary, according to this source:

https://www.politico.com/news/2024/06/25/jamaal-bowman-loses-george-latimer-00164997

Latimer, a challenger who ran like an incumbent, benefited from an unprecedented flood of outside cash in a primary fueled by allegations of racism and the party’s sharp divide over the Israel-Hamas war.

A lot of money was pumped into his campaign, and that seems to make a huge difference.

Given enough money, a smart campaigner could get Mickey Mouse elected to office.

That's the sad and unfortunate truth of American democracy. What's even sadder is that it actually works, that so many people are easily influenced by slick ad campaigns by the forces of belittlement.

Latimer is apparently being painted as a moderate:

And in a clear pivot to a general election race that he is expected to win, Latimer struck a bipartisan tone.

“There are good men and women in Washington who feel the way we do,” he said. “We have to look at the arguments of the far right and the far left and say you cannot destroy this country with your rhetoric.”

But Bowman recognized the power of money and slick advertisements in influencing voters (although he says "brainwashed"):

Speaking at his own party in Yonkers, Bowman blasted AIPAC and its affiliates, which he said helped “brainwash” voters.

The divisions in the Democratic Party also appear to be playing out in Westchester County:

The House district, which includes affluent suburban communities and diverse urban neighborhoods, is not expected to be in play for Republicans in November, making Bowman’s defeat a triumph for centrist Democrats. Since the recent rise of progressives, Latimer and his fellow moderates have sought to drag the party back to the middle, especially when it comes to Israel policy.

AIPAC and its super PAC have spent heavily across the country in a bid to unseat other critics of Israel, but nowhere did they anticipate such an advantage as Bowman’s district, with a large Jewish population.

The pro-Israel lobby called the results “a major victory for the Democratic mainstream that stands with the Jewish state and a defeat for the extremist fringe.”

The group’s aligned super PAC United Democracy Project in a statement vowed to replicate its backing of Latimer against Israel critics across the country.

Latimer was also the Westchester County Executive, so he would have been well-known and supported among the local party establishment. He was considered an unusually formidable candidate to run against an incumbent in his own party. His supporters say that Israel was not the only issue they opposed Bowman over.

Allies of Latimer insisted Israel was only one factor in their argument against Bowman, a former middle school principal. Bowman’s antagonists charged he was not present in the district during his two terms and that his pulling of a fire alarm during a House vote was an embarrassment. His vote against a key infrastructure spending package became fodder for during the campaign as well.

Latimer, the Westchester County executive, has spent decades in local and state elected office, making him a familiar face for Democratic voters and an unusually formidable primary challenger to an incumbent lawmaker. He received endorsements from an array of party officials, elected leaders and local labor unions.

They expect Latimer to win the general election. The Republican candidate is a woman named Miriam Flisser: Miriam Flisser

Bowman is still running under the Working Families Party, so this could divide the Democratic vote in November.

These divisions within the Democratic Party have existed for a long time, mainly between the centrist-moderate Democrats and the more progressive wing of the party. It got especially ugly during the Vietnam War era, such as the violence surrounding the 1968 Convention.

I'm not sure what direction either party will go at this point, but as it appears, both parties are moving steadily towards the right, although Democrats are not quite so far to the right as the Republicans. That's their only real selling point this election: "Vote Democrat! At least we're better than Trump!"

 

[Debater Slayer]

To answer the question of how many voters, it's around 58% of the Democratic voters in this primary, according to this source:

https://www.politico.com/news/2024/06/25/jamaal-bowman-loses-george-latimer-00164997

A lot of money was pumped into his campaign, and that seems to make a huge difference.

Given enough money, a smart campaigner could get Mickey Mouse elected to office.

That's the sad and unfortunate truth of American democracy. What's even sadder is that it actually works, that so many people are easily influenced by slick ad campaigns by the forces of belittlement.

Latimer is apparently being painted as a moderate:



But Bowman recognized the power of money and slick advertisements in influencing voters (although he says "brainwashed"):



The divisions in the Democratic Party also appear to be playing out in Westchester County:





Latimer was also the Westchester County Executive, so he would have been well-known and supported among the local party establishment. He was considered an unusually formidable candidate to run against an incumbent in his own party. His supporters say that Israel was not the only issue they opposed Bowman over.



They expect Latimer to win the general election. The Republican candidate is a woman named Miriam Flisser: Miriam Flisser

Bowman is still running under the Working Families Party, so this could divide the Democratic vote in November.

These divisions within the Democratic Party have existed for a long time, mainly between the centrist-moderate Democrats and the more progressive wing of the party. It got especially ugly during the Vietnam War era, such as the violence surrounding the 1968 Convention.

I'm not sure what direction either party will go at this point, but as it appears, both parties are moving steadily towards the right, although Democrats are not quite so far to the right as the Republicans. That's their only real selling point this election: "Vote Democrat! At least we're better than Trump!"

From what I have read so far, it seems that Bowman has indeed had electoral issues unrelated to his position on Israel. The spending from AIPAC has certainly helped to make him lose, although I don't know that this indicates any sort of tidal wave of "moderate" wins considering that AOC has won her primary against one such candidate—where her campaign also enjoyed more financial backing than her opponent.

I think it is a rather dark reflection on the American political landscape if a candidate can be considered a "moderate" while supporting policies whose practical outcomes are virtually indistinguishable from those of terrorism enablers and warmongers. It goes to show that designations such as "moderate" and "extreme" are relative to the political climate in which they are used and that normalized attitudes may be thoroughly harmful despite being common and therefore "moderate" in a given sociopolitical context—as was the case with racial segregation in the US at one point.

 

[Jayhawker Soule]

its like you believe Jews can do no wrong

On the contrary, it's like you believe that Jews can do no right, and there's a name for that.

Furthermore, your comment is laughably stupid on it face. I have been openly and often harshly critical of Israel for decades. I also have long viewed antisemites as despicable.

 

[Saint Frankenstein]

Right wing Jews spended him out, now even the left wing Jews are against progressives

AIPAC gave $14.5 million to George Latimer. He's nothing but an old Zionist puppet sent to unseat a younger progressive candidate. This is the real foreign election interference that exists. Israel is constantly interfering in our government and elections.

No Group Has Ever Spent as Much as AIPAC Has in the Bowman-Latimer Primary

An analysis of FEC records reveals that the $14.5 million AIPAC's super PAC has spent in the NY-16 Democratic primary is more than any outside group has ever spent on a House race.

readsludge.com

 

[Debater Slayer]

now even the left wing Jews are against progressives

As far as I know, "the left-wing Jews" are a highly diverse and large group, and they include many who stand up for human rights (including when that entails criticizing Israel's policies). I think it is an overgeneralization to attribute a specific position to all of them as if they all had uniform views.