J Street

JStreetPAC's Endorsed Candidates

by Joel Rubin, Political Director, JStreetPAC

$
Distributed among the recipients below

JStreetPAC is proud to endorse the following fresh new voices who are fighting for our vision on the campaign trail and in Congress. Show these candidates how much their courage and leadership means to us by contributing today.

You may use the donation box above to distribute your gift evenly among the candidates listed below, or you may leave the top box blank, scroll down, and input the amount you’d like to contribute to each candidate in the boxes that appear next to the candidate profiles.

Rep. Robert Wexler, Democrat (FL-19)

Rep. Robert Wexler is one of the most thoughtful voices on Middle East policy in Washington along with being one of the strongest supporters of US-Israel relations in Congress. Congressman Wexler describes himself as “a strong supporter of U.S. engagement in the region as a means of finding a lasting and sustainable peace” for Israel and the Palestinians, and has taken bold leadership in working to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons in Congress, having recently called for direct engagement with the Iranian government. Read more.

Rabbi Dennis Shulman, Democrat (NJ-05)

Rabbi Dennis Shulman, blind since childhood, is running to unseat Rep. Scott Garrett (R-NJ). A staunch supporter of Israel, Shulman believes the two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict will promote Israel’s security and US interests in the Middle East. He strongly opposed the Iraq War and enthusiastically embraces JStreetPAC’s principles. His opponent has been one of President Bush’s most loyal supporters. We enthusiastically endorse Dennis Shulman! Read more.

Tom Perriello, Democrat (VA-05)

Tom Perriello is competing to represent Virginia’s 5th district in Congress. He co-founded Avaaz.org, an Internet advocacy group with a truly global reach, spent years waging peace in West Africa, and is a signatory to the “Responsible Plan to End the War in Iraq”. Tom’s expertise in transitional justice also took him to Darfur where he met with rebel and civilian leaders to advance a new round of peace negotiations in 2005. He believes that a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is “key” and that Congress should not tie the parties’ hands as they attempt to reach this goal. Read more.

Ashwin Madia, Democrat (MN-03)

A former Marine Corps Captain who served in Iraq from 2005 to 2006, Ashwin Madia is running to represent Minnesota’s 3rd Congressional district in Congress. Madia’s opposition to the handling of the war in Iraq was a primary motivation for his becoming a Democrat and running for Congress. He believes that the U.S. should engage in forceful diplomacy with nations such as Iran, that the United States should begin a strategic withdrawal from Iraq, and that hands-on American diplomacy should be used to help broker Israeli-Palestinian peace. Read more.

Mary Jo Kilroy, Democrat (OH-15)

In 2006, Mary Jo Kilroy came within 1,062 votes of upsetting Rep. Deborah Pryce. With Pryce retiring, Kilroy is back – in a strong position to capture one of the most competitive open seats in the country. Kilroy is a long-time mover and shaker in local politics, most recently as President of the Franklin County Commission. With her belief in a strong US-Israel relationship and the need for a two state solution, Kilroy will be a real advocate for Middle East peace in the U.S. Congress. Read more.

Debbie Halvorson, Democrat (IL-11)

Foreign policy hits close to home for Debbie Halvorson, whose stepson, a captain in the special forces, has served in Iraq and now serves in Afghanistan. Halvorson, the first woman Majority Leader of the Illinois State Senate, has a reputation as a politician who gets results. We are counting on her bringing that can-do attitude to Middle East policy when she gets to Washington. Read more.

Rep. Donna Edwards, Democrat (MD-04)

Rep. Edwards recently won a special election race for Congress to represent Maryland’s 4th congressional district and will be up for reelection in November. An energetic, fresh face in Maryland politics, Edwards won her primary in February as a progressive reformer with strong grassroots support. She advocates fresh thinking in the Middle East as well. She’ll be a strong voice for American leadership in pursuing a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict as well as aggressive diplomacy to advance U.S. interests in the Middle East. Read more.

Rep. Susan Davis, Democrat (CA-53)

Rep. Susan Davis is a champion for Middle East peace on Capitol Hill. In February 2007, she initiated a resolution calling on President Bush to appoint a special Middle East peace envoy, and this year she signed a letter urging him to step up peace efforts in light of the crisis around Sderot and Gaza. She believes that “This issue is too important for the United States to not be fully engaged.” She opposed the Iraq war from the start and supports engagement with Iran. Read more.

Rep. Steve Cohen, Democrat (TN-09)

Elected in 2006, Cohen has already distinguished himself as a fresh new voice on Capitol Hill and the type of pro-Israel voice JStreetPAC is proud to support. A staunch opponent of the war in Iraq, he has championed other JStreetPAC priorities including increased US assistance to the Palestinian authority to help create conditions for a lasting two-state solution. We are very proud that he agreed to introduce the first round of JStreetPAC endorsements with a short video (you can watch the video at the top of this page). Read more.

Rep. Lois Capps, Democrat (CA-23)

Rep. Lois Capps is a distinguished leader on Middle East peace issues. She has been a leading voice in Congress in support of strong American involvement in the Middle East peace process, has opposed the Iraq War from the start, including voting against the war’s authorization in 2002, and does not support the increasingly bellicose rhetoric against Iran coming out of the Congress. Read more.

Darcy Burner, Democrat (WA-08)

One of the most exciting new faces in American politics, Darcy Burner came within a few thousand votes in 2006 of unseating Rep. Dave Reichert in this suburban Seattle district. Now, Burner’s back for a rematch. She’s established herself as a foreign policy leader among this cycle’s challengers, commissioning “A Responsible Plan to End the War in Iraq” from leading American generals and security experts and organizing 55 other Congressional candidates to support it. Read more.

Rep. Charles Boustany, Republican (LA-07)

Rep. Charles Boustany is already a real leader in Congress on our issues. With Rep. Gary Ackerman (D-NY), he co-authored a letter to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on the eve of the Annapolis peace conference calling for increased US assistance to the Palestinian authority to help create conditions for a lasting two-state solution. With 135 signatures, the letter indicated broad, bipartian support for active American peacemaking. A Lebanese-American and a Republican, Boustany is a tremendous ally for JStreetPAC’s efforts. Read more.

Sam Bennett, Democrat (PA-15)

Sam Bennett is an entrepreneur and CEO campaigning on a promise of bringing her real-world sense to Washington in Pennsylvania 15th Congressional District. She has already exhibited these skills by helping to develop the “Responsible Plan to End the War in Iraq” with other congressional challengers and is a forceful advocate for a more robust American diplomatic engagement with the rest of the world. A quote from Moshe Dayan on her website sums it up by stating that, “You don’t make peace treaties with your friends, you make them with your enemies.” Read more.

JStreetPAC

Support our work electing pro-peace, pro-Israel candidates and educating politicians about a new direction for American policy in the Middle East. Read more.

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