AIPAC Spent $7 Million to Stop Daniel Biss. He Won Anyway.
Quick Read
Summary
Takeaways
- ❖AIPAC spent over $7 million in the Illinois 9th congressional primary to oppose Daniel Biss.
- ❖Biss's campaign made AIPAC's spending the core issue, exposing its origins and motivations.
- ❖Early polling showed AIPAC had high name recognition and was 'toxically unpopular' in the district.
- ❖Biss's strategy involved relentless messaging, detailed financial analysis, and connecting foreign policy decisions to AIPAC's stance.
- ❖AIPAC's ads never mentioned Israel, focusing on other 'hot button' issues through shell organizations.
- ❖Biss advises candidates not to meet with AIPAC, as they operate in bad faith and weaponize conversations.
- ❖He argues that weaponizing 'fake anti-semitism' against legitimate political disagreements is counterproductive and alienates voters.
Insights
1Countering Super PAC Spending by Making it the Issue
Daniel Biss's campaign successfully countered over $7 million in AIPAC spending by making the super PAC's involvement the central issue. They laid groundwork early, explaining who AIPAC was, why they were spending (to secure unconditional military aid to Israel), and how they were attempting to hide their money and mislead voters. This relentless messaging, combined with detailed financial analysis, allowed them to frame the narrative.
Biss states, 'We made a decision pretty early on that we were going to make this the issue. We were going to lay the groundwork to explain what Apac was doing, who they were... why they were doing it... and then number three, critically to say, 'Hey, listen. They're trying to hide this from you.''
2Pre-emptive Polling and Strategic Messaging
Before AIPAC spent any money, Biss's campaign conducted polling that revealed AIPAC had high name recognition and was 'toxically unpopular' among those who knew them in the district. This early insight informed their decision to proactively address AIPAC's likely involvement and build a narrative around it, rather than reacting defensively.
Biss explains, 'We pulled and made strategic decisions knowing that Apac would likely spend later... we tested APAC in our poll... I was surprised to learn their name ID was very high and they were toxically unpopular among those who knew then.'
3The Danger of Weaponizing 'Anti-Semitism' Against Dissent
Biss argues that AIPAC's hardline approach, which dismisses nuanced views and labels legitimate political disagreements as 'anti-Semitic,' is counterproductive. He contends that this tactic alienates potential allies and can inadvertently push people towards more extreme positions, ultimately harming the broader cause of combating genuine anti-Semitism.
Biss states, 'If you label someone who's not anti-semitic, but has a legitimate political disagreement with you as an anti-semite, you're pushing them away and over time creating anti-semmites.' He also notes, 'there is plenty of disingenuous weaponization of fake anti-semitism to silence political voices and achieve political objectives.'
Lessons
- Candidates should not meet with AIPAC, as they operate in bad faith and weaponize conversations against those who disagree with their 'no strings attached' military aid position.
- Renounce the influence of super PACs across various issue areas (e.g., AI, crypto, foreign policy) that swamp districts with money while avoiding their core issue.
- Adopt a strategy of relentless, fearless, and long-term truth-telling to educate constituents about out-of-state money and its motives, especially when outspent.
- Prepare constituents for external attacks by explaining that standing for their values may attract significant opposition funding, helping them correctly interpret negative messaging.
The Anti-AIPAC Campaign Template
**Pre-emptive Polling:** Conduct early polling to gauge public sentiment towards potential external spending groups like AIPAC. Identify their name recognition and favorability.
**Lay Groundwork Early:** Begin messaging about the anticipated external spending and its implications well in advance of the election cycle.
**Expose the Source and Motive:** Clearly articulate who the external spending group is, why they are spending (e.g., specific policy litmus tests), and the financial sources behind them (e.g., 'Trump donors').
**Highlight Deception:** Emphasize how the group attempts to hide their involvement (e.g., shell PACs with benign names) and mislead voters by focusing on unrelated issues in their ads.
**Relentless Messaging:** Use every opportunity (poll releases, campaign finance reports, foreign policy developments) to reiterate the narrative about external influence and dark money.
**Invest in Counter-Messaging:** Allocate campaign funds, even in resource-limited environments, to run ads that directly explain the external spending and its agenda to voters.
**Advise Constituents:** Prepare voters that external money will attack the candidate for standing on their values, helping them interpret these attacks correctly.
Quotes
"They were doing this because they want to install a person who would sign off on a blank check of no strings attached military aid to the Netanyahu government no matter what they do in Gaza or the West Bank."
"To me, the core of Judaism is like an intellectual open-mindedness, a pluralism, an appreciation of nuance, and arguing back and forth and seeing others points of view. And their approach was so hardline, so my way or the highway... it just somehow it felt very unJewish to me."
"Your Jewish identity, your connection to Israel, your background as a descendant of Holocaust survivors means we can't dismiss you... your arguments are going to have to be taken seriously. And the truth of the matter is, I don't think that their position is defensible on the merits."
"If you label someone who's not anti-semitic, but has a legitimate political disagreement with you as an anti-semite, you're pushing them away and over time creating anti-semmites."
"I was surprised to learn their name ID was very high and they were toxically unpopular among those who knew then."
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