Of all the leftists in Congress who have been critical of Israel and supportive of the Hamas terrorists (and there have been many), the members of "The Squad" have been the most vocal and vehement. Not satisfied with simply calling for a ceasefire or more aid for Gazan "civilians," Rashida Tlaib and her fellow squad members have been accusing Israel (and by association, Joe Biden) of "genocide" and invoking violent rhetoric such as "from the river to the sea," calling for the extermination of the Jewish state. This has understandably resulted in a number of primary challengers stepping up to attempt to remove them from office. Much of the opposition's funding is coming from pro-Israel groups such as AIPAC, the American Israel Public Affairs Committee. But as the Associated Press reports this week, this rhetorical conflict has resulted in a significant surge of campaign donations coming toward the Squad members. And the vast majority of the money is coming from Arab-Americans and Muslims.

They were warned that their criticism of Israel after Oct. 7 could cost them politically. But in the months after the bloody war began between the Jewish state and Hamas, progressives in Congress who have called for a ceasefire in Gaza are seeing record fundraising dollars as they fight to remain in office.

Members of the “squad” — a group of liberals in the House — are being singled out by pro-Israel PACs like the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, better known as AIPAC. The groups have pledged or plan to spend tens of millions of dollars to try to defeat them in Democratic primaries and the general election this year, turning the otherwise safely Democratic districts into election battlegrounds.

The cohort of Black and brown lawmakers is facing what they see as an “existential threat” to their political careers.

It was Jamaal Bowman who spoke up to the press about the increased fundraising. She told the AP that "the Muslim community has felt erased and dehumanized throughout this process." How anyone on that side of the debate feels "erased" is a mystery since you can't get them to shut up about it. They get round-the-clock media coverage and their supporters are shutting down the streets in major cities with their protests. They show up at government buildings and Joe Biden's campaign fundraisers, chanting about "Genocide Joe" and zionists and everything else. These are some of the least "erased" people in the country at the moment.

Money is always important in political campaigns, for better or for worse. But I have my doubts that this outpouring of donations will save the Squad members. Rashida Tlaib might be okay, given the heavy presence of Muslims and Arab-Americans in her district. But even there they remain a minority. In other districts such as Bowman's, people with these vehement anti-Israel positions are in a distinct minority. That's true of most of the country. The pro-Hamas protests may be noisy and occasionally violent, attracting hundreds or even thousands of people, but the vast majority of the country remains supportive of our staunch ally. 

These dissidents have been at least somewhat effective in impacting public opinion, however. While most still consider Israel an ally and don't dispute its right to survive, an increasing number of people have become convinced that the damage in Gaza has been excessive. A recent poll from the AP shows that 50% of voters now believe that Israel's response in Gaza has "gone too far." That's an increase of ten percent from the same polling question in November. Meanwhile, 46% say that either Israel's response has been "about right" or they have "not gone far enough. In November, just 18% of Republicans said "too far."

The breakdown in those numbers follows predictable party lines. 63% of Democrats say Israel has gone too far as compared to 52% of independents and 33% of Republicans. Sixty percent now say that recovering the hostages should be the top priority in Gaza, while only 30% described US military aid to Israel as the highest priority. So the numbers are definitely shifting a bit as the war grinds on. But that still may not be enough to rescue the Squad from pro-Israel primary challengers.