Rep. Jamaal Bowman of New York is within the fight of his political life in opposition to Westchester County Govt George Latimer forward of the June 25 main.
That combat acquired even nastier on Monday, with Latimer dealing with expenses of Islamophobia after he invoked Dearborn, Michigan throughout a digital debate hosted by the League of Ladies Voters of Westchester County.
“If you get as a lot cash as you get from outdoors the district, your constituency is Dearborn, Michigan. Your constituency is San Francisco, California,” stated Latimer. “It isn’t Harrison, it is not Tuckahoe, it is not Scarsdale. You are not even there to be a part of the occasions of these communities.”
This was the purpose through the LWV debate the place George Latimer stated to Jamaal Bowman: “Your constituency is Dearborn, Michigan, your constituency is San Francisco, California.” pic.twitter.com/U4ta4bcBhG
— bryan metzger (@metzgov) June 11, 2024
Bowman accused Latimer on Tuesday morning of utilizing an “Islamophobic dogwhistle.” Progressives on the whole have argued that Latimer is working a bigoted marketing campaign in opposition to Bowman, which Latimer refutes.
“George Latimer has traded in his dog-whistle for a bullhorn,” stated New York Working Households Celebration Co-Director Jasmine Gripper stated in a press release, arguing that his “bigoted feedback in opposition to Arab-People is the most recent in a collection of racist appeals which have solely served to divide the neighborhood.”
A spokesperson for Latimer’s marketing campaign dismissed the accusations of Islamophobia.
“One other day, one other lie from Jamaal Bowman,” stated the spokesperson. “George’s feedback have been taken out of context – as a result of in the identical breath he additionally talked about San Francisco, California — one other metropolis the place the incumbent has obtained donations from.”
Dearborn is a majority-Arab metropolis in Michigan that is house to one of many largest Muslim populations per capita within the US.
It has been the focus of the Uncommitted motion, with Democrats withholding their votes for President Joe Biden over his assist for Israel’s conflict in Gaza.
In the midst of a heated primary that is revolved primarily round Bowman’s vital stance towards Israel, Latimer has lengthy argued that the controversial congressman will not be adequately attuned to the wants of the district.
He has additionally highlighted lots of Bowman’s controversies, together with pulling a hearth alarm on the Capitol, his past support for 9/11 conspiracy theories, and his one-time denial of sexual violence on October 7.
It is true that the majority of Bowman’s $2.7 million fundraising haul this cycle has come from outdoors of New York.
However a evaluation of the Bowman marketing campaign’s filings with the Federal Election Fee present that lower than $24,000 of Bowman’s itemized contributions have come from Michigan. That features a mixed $1,250 from two Dearborn residents and $6,600 from a single donor in Dearborn Heights.
Bowman additionally maintains a joint fundraising committee with Rep. Rashida Tlaib, who does signify Dearborn. However filings point out that the group’s roughly $30,000 sum has come totally from New York-based donors.
Latimer has obtained vital monetary backing from the pro-Israel group AIPAC, which has spent greater than $13 million on the first to this point. Most of the group’s donors are Republicans, a indisputable fact that progressives have been keen to spotlight.
However Latimer’s monetary assist can also be extra native — roughly 70% of his direct contributions come from New York, whereas lower than 30% of Bowman’s come from the state.
“The exhausting reality is that almost all of the incumbent’s donors come from tons of and hundreds of miles away from the Bronx and Westchester — the communities the place the citizens really stay and will probably be voting from beginning June 15,” stated the Latimer spokesperson.
