The RJC’s efforts to help GOP challenger Randy
Feenstra unseat Rep. Steve King (R-IA-4) in
the primary have attracted strong media attention.
The JTA ran a
full story on this unusual move by the RJC:
The Republican Jewish Coalition is best known
for scorching ads challenging the pro-Israel credentials of Democratic
candidates. This election cycle, however, it is leading the charge
against a GOP congressman: Steve King of Iowa.
…Not only is the Republican Jewish Coalition leading the
charge to keep King in the GOP doghouse, the group wants him out of
office altogether. Its political action committee recently announced
that it was backing Randy Feenstra, the Iowa state senator who is
challenging King in the primary.
…But party-aligned interest groups like the RJC are
influential not just because of donors, but also because the parties
look to them to take the lead on issues the interest group most cares
about. The RJC making a case that a Republican is trafficking in
anti-Semitism or white supremacism carries more weight than when it
comes from an outside group.
…Since launching the campaign targeting King, [RJC Executive
Director Matt] Brooks has tweaked
his counterpart at the Jewish Democratic Council of America,
Halie Soifer, for not backing primary challenges to
[Reps. Rashida] Tlaib [of Michigan]
and Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, who
both back Israel boycotts. “Our guys have never shied away from
speaking up and trying to take candidates out,” he said. “It would be
nice to see something comparable on the other side.”
Read
the whole thing here.
The RJC was also recognized for our get-out-the-vote efforts,
which helped Mike Garcia win the special election in
California’s 15th Congressional District last week. JTA’s weekly
roundup included
this quote from RJC’s Alex
Siegel:
“Not only did our PAC and supporters fundraise for him, but we
used peer-to-peer texting to encourage Jewish Republican voters in the
district to return their ballots,” Alex Siegel, the RJC’s deputy
executive director and California regional director, tells me. “With
mail-in ballots figuring to be much more prevalent in this November’s
election, our use of this political technology will be a key outreach
tool for us.”
