Overview:
The American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) is recognized as the driving force behind “America’s pro-Israel lobby”.
The group is actively courted by both liberal and conservative politicians. The lobby group’s stated goal is to “ensure that both America and Israel remain strong and that they collaborate closely together.”
Highlighting the importance and effectiveness of AIPAC, one of its former lobbyists, Steven J. Rosen, reportedly slid a napkin to “pro-Israel” writer Jeffrey Goldberg and joked, “You see this napkin? In twenty-four hours, we could have the signatures of seventy senators on this napkin.”
AIPAC’s Role in the US Theatre of Zionist Influence Operations
Project Nemesis categorizes AIPAC as part of an older and more classic strain of Zionist influence operations in the US, focused on the US Congress and related politicians and exhorting funds and votes from its targets. Being at the center of the US Zionist Lobby scene, its main role is to be provide a sphere for consensus-making among the larger US Zionist theatre, consisting of a large web of influential individuals, funds, media groups, think tanks, campus initiatives and etc. spanning across the US’ political spectrum.
AIPAC’s Main Objectives
Studying AIPAC’s initiatives, the lobbying group’s main areas of focus can be described under two main objectives:
- Lobbying for US Military funding to Israel (in various forms)
The United States, for example, extensively sponsored Israel’s Arrow missile defense system, which AIPAC has dubbed “among the world’s most sophisticated missile shields.”
- Preparing the Next Generation of Pro-Israel Leaders (far beyond Jewish circles)
“In the last few years, the American Israel Public Affairs Committee has broadly expanded beyond its Jewish membership base reaching out to Hispanics, African-Americans, and Christian activists,” according to the Religion News Service1.
We have found the Militarist Monitor’s page regarding AIPAC to be very comprehensive for further study2.
1: www.religionnews.com/2006/03/11/pro-israel-lobby-seeks-christian-campus-allies-to-broaden-its-base/
2: https://militarist-monitor.org/profile/american_israel_public_affairs_committee/
