US Democratic lawmaker slams Israeli lobbying group for spending in New Jersey primary

​​​​​​​By Rabia Iclal Turan

WASHINGTON (AA) - US Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez sharply criticized the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) on Friday, saying the pro-Israel lobby undermines democracy.

“I hope Dems begin to see that moderate or progressive, AIPAC is not our friend,” Ocasio-Cortez wrote on X.

She accused the group of backing Jan. 6 insurrectionists while pressuring elected officials to ignore US laws, including the Leahy laws that prohibit assistance to foreign forces committing human rights abuses.

“They are a right-wing organization that undermines democracy,” she said.

“They have zero tolerance for any diversity of thought from their line, and pressure elected officials to increasingly place themselves at odds with our responsibility to represent the electorate and the views of the majority of Americans, who find the genocide in Gaza an appalling affront to American values and do not want to see US taxpayer funded weapons used to perpetuate it,” she added.

Her remarks came in response to reports that AIPAC's the United Democracy Project (UDP), spent $1.9 million to defeat former Rep. Tom Malinowski in the Democratic primary in New Jersey, while indirectly supporting “moderate” candidate Tahesha Way.