{"id":49595,"date":"2026-08-07T12:32:08","date_gmt":"2026-08-07T19:32:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/?p=49595"},"modified":"2026-08-07T12:32:09","modified_gmt":"2026-08-07T19:32:09","slug":"see-you-in-november-progressives-welcome-the-fight-as-aipac-plots-round-two-against-el-sayed","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/2026\/08\/07\/see-you-in-november-progressives-welcome-the-fight-as-aipac-plots-round-two-against-el-sayed\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018See You in November\u2019: Progressives Welcome the Fight as AIPAC Plots Round Two Against El-Sayed"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"Michigan<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

US Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), Michigan Democratic candidate for US Senate Abdul El-Sayed, and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) address a rally on July 18, 2026 in Detroit, Michigan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u00a0(Photo by Sarah Rice\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019m happy to burn your money for you, and then we can get on to the business of governing,\u201d Abdul El-Sayed said in a message to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee.<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Jake Johnson<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Aug 06, 2026 (CommonDreams.org)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After setting over $30 million<\/a> on fire in Michigan\u2019s Democratic US Senate<\/a> primary, the American Israel Public Affairs Committee is reportedly plotting round two against progressive epidemiologist Abdul El-Sayed\u2014this time seeking to boost his Republican general election opponent, Mike Rogers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The New York Times<\/a> reported<\/a> Wednesday that the pro-Israel lobbying organization, known as AIPAC<\/a>, \u201chas told allies that it is considering a major financial campaign to support the Republican Senate nominee in the Michigan general election this fall.\u201d AIPAC<\/a> said<\/a> publicly following El-Sayed\u2019s victory over Rep. Haley Stevens (D-Mich.) in Tuesday\u2019s primary that \u201cour members remain determined to ensure that voters reject Dr. El-Sayed and his radical anti-Israel agenda in November.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

RECOMMENDED…<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Abdul<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

El-Sayed on Track to Win US Senate Primary, Overcoming AIPAC\u2019s $30 Million Onslaught<\/a><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"Michigan<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Progressives Aim to Defeat AIPAC Cash, Democratic Establishment in Michigan and Missouri Primaries<\/a><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez<\/a> (D-NY), who endorsed and campaigned for El-Sayed, wrote<\/a> in response to AIPAC\u2019s post-election statement that she appreciates the group \u201cproving it doesn\u2019t belong in the Dem Party and especially in our primaries.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cFrom endorsing Jan. 6th members<\/a> to ensuring Congress remains in the hands of a 34-count felon, AIPAC is an org committed to undermining democracy<\/a> at home and abroad,\u201d Ocasio-Cortez wrote on social media<\/a>. \u201cSee you in November.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rep. Chris Deluzio (D-Pa.) noted that \u201ca big majority of Americans want the US government to stop sending American dollars to Israel\u2019s reckless regime and to end the war in Iran.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYet AIPAC is threatening to spend to deliver the Republicans<\/a> a critical Senate seat in Michigan, helping a Trump stooge like Mike Rogers who will keep funding Netanyahu\u2019s wars and do nothing to stop Trump\u2019s Iran war,\u201d said Deluzio. \u201cThis is exactly why so many Democrats like me have rejected AIPAC.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

AIPAC cash accounted for around half of all outside spending in the contest between El-Sayed and Stevens\u2014the most expensive Democratic primary<\/a> in American history.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But the organization and its affiliated groups appear to have plenty more resources to devote to the general election, the results of which could decide control of the US Senate next year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The United Democracy Project (UDP), AIPAC\u2019s super PAC, had over $80 million in cash in hand at the end of June, according to federal filings<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

AIPAC is UDP\u2019s primary funder, but the group has also received cash from right-wing billionaires<\/a> such as hedge fund manager Paul Singer and businessman Haim Saban.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

During a virtual town hall<\/a> days before Tuesday\u2019s election, El-Sayed\u2014a vocal opponent of US support for Israel\u2019s genocidal assault on Gaza\u2014dared AIPAC to keep pouring its financial resources into Michigan\u2019s Senate race.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAIPAC, if you\u2019re listening, burn your money. Come back and burn it again in the general,\u201d said El-Sayed. \u201cI\u2019m happy to burn your money for you, and then we can get on to the business of governing and asking whether or not our foreign policy ought to be dictated to us by the interests of a foreign government.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jake Johnson<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jake Johnson is a senior editor and staff writer for Common Dreams.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Full Bio ><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

US Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), Michigan Democratic candidate for US Senate Abdul El-Sayed, and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) address a rally on July 18, 2026 in Detroit, Michigan. \u00a0(Photo by Sarah Rice\/Getty Images) \u201cI\u2019m happy to burn your money for you, and then we can get on to the business… Continue reading → <\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2346],"tags":[174,2334],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49595"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=49595"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49595\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":49596,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49595\/revisions\/49596"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=49595"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=49595"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=49595"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}