Kirsten Gillibrand settles in with anti-Israel groups

For someone who was recently described as one of the hot prospects for a 2020 presidential run, New York Senator Kirsten Gillibrand certainly picks some odd bedfellows, politically speaking. (Yes, Gillibrand has repeatedly said that she’s not interested, but she always seems to couch such statements in language which leaves the door open if the people really, really wanted her.) An upcoming social justice event will be featuring her as the keynote speaker and the crowd organizing the meeting has a decidedly antisemitic flavor to it.

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She’ll be addressing “The Brooklyn Conference” in the Big Apple next week, and the list of sponsors and participating groups have a significant history of supporting the boycott, divest and sanction (BDS) movement against Israel. And no matter which party you happen to belong to, people tend to notice these things. (Free Beacon)

The conference is co-sponsored by JPMorgan Chase and the Open Society Foundations, founded and funded by prominent left-wing billionaire George Soros. One of the organization’s objectives is to erode Israel’s status as a democracy on the world stage, according to internal emails leaked last year.

Senior program officer for Open Society, Alvin Starks, is slated to speak at the event, as will the head of the Center for American Progress, another Soros project.

Black Live Matter co-founders Alicia Garza and Opal Tometi will both be giving speeches. Garza has defended the Movement for Black Lives platform‘s inclusion of a pro-BDS policy, and both women have been outspoken about their condemnation of Israel on social media.

This isn’t just a dubious move in terms of national political aspirations, but once again puts Gillibrand at odds with her partner in politics, the senior Senator from New York and Senate Minority Leader, Chuck Schumer. The disconnect here is particularly jarring because, as you may recall, it was only this summer when Gillibrand agreed to cosponsor a bill criminalizing any attempt to boycott Israel. (The Gothamist)

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Both of New York’s Senators have signed on to a bill that would criminalize any attempt by Americans to boycott Israel, according to a new report.

According to The Intercept, Senators Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand are among 43 U.S. Senators who have co-sponsored the Anti-Israel Boycott Act, a bill that the ACLU wote is “antithetical to free speech protections enshrined in the First Amendment” in a letter to lawmakers urging them to oppose the bill.

If Kirsten Gillibrand has truly seen the light and opposes the BDS movement, what’s she doing taking a spot as the keynote speaker at this event? You’d think that anyone holding such a position would avoid any George Soros money like the plague. Also, in addition to the Black Lives Matter contingent at the conference (who embraced BDS in their official platform for some reason), she’s going to be there alongside supporters of the Chicago Dyke March, which somewhat famously booted two lesbian Jewish Zionists from their event in the Windy City this summer.

The more I think about it, perhaps Gillibrand should seriously remove herself from 2020 considerations after all. In addition to her very blue dog positions from her days in the House (which are all still lurking out there on the record), she’s running up a string of self-inflicted wounds which would anger her base and provide endless pools of opposition research opportunities for the GOP.

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