Omar’s and Tlaib’s ascendancy within the Democratic Party, alongside Bernie Sanders and other progressives who reject bundled donor or corporate money, “challenges the entire structure on which AIPAC’s influence is based,” noted Lara Friedman, president of the Foundation for Middle East Peace, a left-leaning Washington-based think tank.

“This could certainly be successful,” Friedman said. “But let’s be clear: if AIPAC believes that a new group selling same old AIPAC hasbara is going to resonate with Americans who today are voting both with their ballots and their wallets to support candidates who are truly progressive — including when it comes to Israel-Palestine issues — then it suggests that AIPAC is out of touch or in denial about what is happening at the grassroots level in this country.”

opies of declassified United States government cables, chronicling the Baruch Goldstein massacre of 29 Muslim worshipers in Hebron in 1994 and its aftermath, have been tucked away in a box under the desk Lara Friedman.

In this edition of FMEP’s podcast series “Occupied Thoughts,” Peter Beinart is joined by Omar Shakir, the Director of the Israel and Palestine program at…

Lara Friedman, a former U.S. foreign service officer in Jerusalem and president of the Foundation for Middle East Peace, called the consulate closure “a massive shift” in U.S. policy. “At this point we are saying to the Palestinians and the world — we do not see the Palestinians as a people to engage directly. They are now a minority and a subset to our relationship with Israel,” said Friedman, who is not related to the ambassador.

1. Bills, Resolutions, & Letters 2. Hearings 3. On the Record *Brought to you in cooperation with Americans for Peace Now, where the Round-Up was…

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