![]() ![]() Levin says the most serious threat to Jews emerges from the right wing Stevens says it must be confronted on both the right and the left. Stevens is backed by AIPAC, the powerhouse pro-Israel lobby, while Levin is backed by J Street, AIPAC’s more liberal foil. profile in Israel-Palestinian peace talks, while Stevens believes intensive U.S. ![]() The divides between them on issues of Israel and antisemitism are stark: Levin has led a legislative effort to raise the U.S. She is not Jewish, and is a moderate when it comes to Jewish issues, she is laser-focused on staunch defense of Israel against its enemies and is skeptical of a reentry into the Iran nuclear deal. Stevens, 38, worked on Democratic presidential campaigns and is a veteran of the Obama administration’s efforts to revive the auto industry after the 2008 recession. He says his Jewish identity informs a broad array of passions, from his synagogue membership and his warnings about autocracy in America and abroad, to his advocacy to combat climate change and his willingness to criticize Israel in its treatment of the Palestinians. Levin, 61, a former longtime union leader, both wears his Jewish involvement and liberal Zionism on his sleeve and is friends with Rashida Tlaib, the Detroit congresswoman who does not agree with Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish state. The email and its fallout underscores how the deadlocked Levin-Stevens August primary - early polls showed an exact tie, with 18% undecided - is encapsulating the main Jewish issues germane to voters heading into this year’s midterm elections: Israel policy and the root causes of antisemitism. “It is out of bounds to malign the only Jewish candidate in this race by impugning Andy’s love for the State of Israel or his community bona fides, which run strong and run deep,” the signatories wrote. Jerrold Nadler and Jamie Raskin, who signed a letter with nine other current and former Jewish Democrats in defense of Levin. The email drew instant furor, including from the prominent Reps. So when Andy Levin insists he’s pro-Israel, less engaged Democratic colleagues may take him at his word.” To make matters worse, Andy sincerely claims to be a lifelong Zionist, proud Jew and defender of Israel. “And he does so as a Levin, a name which due to his uncle and father commands respect and admiration on Capitol Hill. “Andy frequently and one-sidedly criticizes Israel, defends and even fundraises for its worst detractors … and from his seat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee authors and supports highly problematic legislation,” Victor wrote in an appeal for a fundraiser that would eventually net close to $400,000. But in the message, sent to pro-Israel donors in the Detroit area, Victor called Levin “arguably the most corrosive member of Congress to the U.S.-Israel relationship,” and urged the donors to back Stevens in the race. Victor had backed Levin, son of longtime former Congressman Sandy Levin (who was brother to the late U.S. Not long after, an email sent by David Victor, a past president of the pro-Israel AIPAC lobby group who lives in the Detroit area, was leaked to a progressive group and posted on social media. Two incumbent Democratic House representatives first elected in 2018, Haley Stevens and Andy Levin, soon went from cordial allies to primary opponents, each hoping to win the Detroit-area seat come November. ![]() (JTA) - In January, Michigan’s 11th district was redrawn as part of statewide congressional map changes. ![]()
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