Rep. Eliot Engel faces upset: What’s left of the Democratic Party?
The pro-Israel community, already shocked by the retirement of longtime Israel advocate Rep. Nita Lowey and the likely defeat of Rep. Eliot Engel on June 23, now must watch as the pair’s successors head to Washington, D.C.
Lowey, from her perch chairing the powerful Appropriations Committee, and Engel, leading the Foreign Affairs Committee, have proven to be valuable allies for most of the past three decades.
During the final days of Engel’s campaign to remain in office for a 17th term, the subject of Congressional funding of Israel began to creep into the discourse. Engel’s likely loss — absentee ballots are still being counted — means that a staunch and decades-old friend of Israel may be replaced by Jamaal Bowman, a school principal endorsed by Cortez and Bernie Sanders.
“The economic and social interests that would oppose additional aid to Israel are joining together,” said Sheinkopf, who was described by Campaigns and Elections magazine as one of New York’s top political influencers, “and that is a very frightening moment.”
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