Va. congressman accuses AIPAC on Iraq

E-mail News Brief Tell the Editors

Published: 09/09/2007

A Democratic congressman accused AIPAC of having "pushed" the Iraq war.

"AIPAC is the most powerful lobby and has pushed this war from the beginning," U.S. Rep. Jim Moran (D-Va.) said in this month's Tikkun magazine. "Because they are so well organized, and their members are extraordinarily powerful -- most of them are quite wealthy -- they have been able to exert power."

Moran has stirred controversy in the past for his criticisms of the Israel lobby. The National Jewish Democratic Council called on Moran to retract the comments about the American Israel Public Affairs Committee.

"It is never easy nor pleasant to criticize a fellow Democrat, but sometimes it is necessary," the Democratic council said in a statement. "While there is nothing wrong with criticizing AIPAC -- or for that matter any organization with which you disagree -- spreading false statements is clearly irresponsible."

Noting that Moran's comments came as American political scientists John Mearsheimer and Stephen Walt have published a book positing the same argument, the Democratic council said, "Moran's comments are not only incorrect and irresponsible, they are downright dangerous."