A political ad backing Abdul El-Sayed tells Michigan families that America’s support for Israel is part of the reason they cannot afford groceries. It turns Israel into the culprit for economic pain and casts Americans who support Israel as politicians bought by a foreign power, choosing Israel over their own neighbors. That is the old dual-loyalty smear dressed up as a grocery-price argument.
“Even though the rage of the people sometimes flares high against the eternal blood-sucker [Jew], it does not in the least prevent him from reappearing in a few years in the place he had hardly left and beginning the old life all over again. No persecution can deter him from his type of human exploitation, none can drive him away; after every persecution he is back again in a short time, and just the same as before.” – Adolf Hitler, Mein Kampf
The ad comes from Rebellion PAC, founded by Cenk Uygur. It links U.S. aid to Israel and the war in Gaza to the cost of food, while accusing Republican Mike Rogers of putting Israeli interests ahead of Michigan families. The Anti-Defamation League’s Jonathan Greenblatt condemned the ad as scapegoating Israel.
The figures expose the absurdity of the accusation. The United States spends an estimated $80 billion annually to maintain its military presence abroad. Japan, Germany, South Korea, Qatar, Italy and the United Kingdom together account for tens of billions of that cost. Israel receives $3.8 billion in regular annual military assistance – less than five percent of the $80 billion estimate. The ad singles out Israel while ignoring the vastly larger cost of America’s global military posture.
The Ukraine comparison is just as revealing. Since the wars began, the United States has provided roughly $127 billion in assistance to Ukraine, compared with $21.7 billion in military aid to Israel—about six times as much for Ukraine. The Russia-Ukraine war has caused an estimated 610,000 deaths, compared with roughly 77,000 in the Israel-Hamas war. That is about eight times as many deaths in Ukraine.
America’s own casualty record sharpens the contrast. More than 65,000 U.S. service members died in the recent direct wars: Vietnam, Iraq, Afghanistan, the Gulf War and the U.S.-Iran war. In the wars Ukraine and Israel are fighting against America’s adversaries, three American soldiers were killed in Jordan by an Iran-backed militia.
The ad offers no evidence that aid to Israel drives grocery prices. Instead, it directs public anger at Israel and at Americans who support its right to defend itself. It turns pro-Israel sentiment into an accusation of disloyalty: if you support Israel, you are supposedly taking food from American families.
Dana Nessel, a fellow Michigan Democrat – who has endorsed El-Sayed – has already warned her party to stop making Israel and AIPAC the villains in every political story.
Cenk Uygur’s PAC turns grocery prices into an indictment of Israel. His nephew, Hasan Piker, supplies the online megaphone. Zohran Mamdani and El-Sayed give this politics electoral respectability. The message running through it is profound Jew hatred: Jews who support Israel are foreign agents, their loyalty is suspect, and their political participation is a threat to ordinary Americans.
“Trade and all money business he considers his very own privilege, which he exploits ruthlessly. Financial business and trade have become altogether his monopoly.” – Adolf Hitler, Mein Kampf
Nessel has told them to stop. Jewish groups have told them to stop. Instead, they are doubling-down as elections approach.
Every Democrat who stays silent while Zionists are cast as the cause of Americans’ financial hardship helps make antisemitism acceptable. Voting for these candidates and promoting their backers accelerates the demonization of Jews.
