Ocasio-Cortez accuses pro-Israel group of ‘coming after’ her, Omar and Tlaib

“It’s official. AIPAC is coming after Alexandria, Ilhan, and Rashida,” declared a fundraising appeal from Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.

By World Israel News Staff

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) recently distributed an appeal for donations claiming that the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) lobbying group is “coming after [her], Ilhan [Omar], and Rashida [Tlaib].”

Her proof for the accusation is a statement from an individual named Stephen Fiske, whom she identifies as an “AIPAC activist,” who was quoted in a recent New York Times article positing that Ocasio-Cortez, Omar, and Tlaib “will not be around in several years.” A photo accompanying the article shows Fiske wearing phylacteries (tefillin), traditional Jewish ritual items worn during prayers.

Fiske recently spoke with the Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA) and confirmed that he has not been associated with AIPAC for several years. Furthermore, JTA highlighted that AIPAC’s strategy generally “discourages alienating safe incumbents,” such as Ocasio-Cortez, Omar, and Tlaib, who are “seen as shoo-ins for re-election.”

Ocasio-Cortez’s fundraising appeal was posted to Twitter on Thursday by Ben Jacobs, a reporter for the U.K.’s Guardian newspaper.

Ocasio-Cortez’s accusations regarding the pro-Israel lobby “coming after” her arrive on the heels of a major anti-Semitism scandal in the Democratic party based on comments by Rep. Ilhan Omar (D.-Minn.), who recently accused AIPAC of paying off elected officials to support the Jewish state, tweeting a reference to hundred dollar bills, “It’s all about the Benjamins, baby!”

“Rashida, Ilhan and Alexandria have at times dared to question our foreign policy, and the influence of money in our political system,” continues Ocasio-Cortez’s fundraising letter. “And now, lobbying groups across the board are working to punish them for it.”

After the Times ran the article quoting Fiske, anti-Israel mouthpiece Youssef Munayyer, a supporter of the U.S.-designated terror group the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), tweeted, “AIPAC activist tells NYT the lobby is coming for Congresswomen @AOC @RashidaTlaib and @IlhanMN,” which was retweeted thousands of times.