The Pro-Israel Lobby’s Quiet Cash Shuffle

As support for Israel becomes politically toxic, the Better Blue Fund is emerging as a quiet new conduit for AIPAC-linked money in key Democratic primary races.

By Luke Goldstein, The Lever

Amid widespread public disapproval of Israel’s mounting destruction across the Middle East, pro-Israel donors aligned with the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) appear to be resorting to new, innocuous-sounding fundraising vehicles to covertly channel money to favored candidates in high-stakes Democratic primaries.

That now includes the Better Blue Fund, a newly formed umbrella group that’s using weakened campaign finance rules to act as a “one-stop shop” for contributions from some of the pro-Israel lobby’s largest longtime donors, albeit with no mention of having a pro-Israel agenda. In less than two months, the fund has amassed more than $250,000 as it backs Democratic candidates already under fire from progressive challengers for supporting military aid to Israel or receiving endorsements from pro-Israel groups.

That list includes former Rep. Ben McAdams in Utah, House incumbents Adriano Espaillat and Dan Goldman in New York, and Rep. Wesley Bell in Missouri, who are all facing contested primary races where their support for pro-Israel policies has come under scrutiny