Hakeem Jeffries Pushes Back After Jen Psaki Hypes Anti-Israel Momentum on MS NOW

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) pushed back after MS NOW host Jen Psaki touted the political momentum of anti-Israel Democrats during a Wednesday evening interview.

Jeffries’s comments came during the following discussion about the triumph of three far-left Democratic congressional candidates in New York’s Tuesday night primary contests:

PSAKI: Let me ask you about another issue, because elections and the outcomes of them, it was a diverse array of candidates, as you just said, who won last night. You can reflect on where voters are and maybe you can learn sometimes from where voters are. And one of the other things that Chris and Mayor Mamdani talked about was Israel, and the issue of support for Israel. And this was a real issue in these three races where Mayor Mamdani endorsed candidates who did win. As you said, you were involved in two of those races.

As you look to the outcome of those races and you look to the people who are going to be coming and representing those districts, I mean, one of the things he said is that “I think that Israel played a major role,” He was asked about the Lander-Goldman race, “because New Yorkers have had to watch as tens of billions of our tax dollars have been spent on bombs that not only shred international law, but the lives of civilians.” How have you reflected on the message voters have sent on that particular issue coming out of last night?

JEFFRIES:  Yeah, no, you know, that’s a very interesting question. In New York City, like many other places, has a variety of different folks who have different views on a whole host of issues, both domestic, of course, which I think the affordability crisis continues to be the highest priority for the American people. And our focus will continue to be drive down the high cost of living, make life more affordable, fix our broken health care system, and of course clean up corruption wherever it may be found, here in Washington, D.C. particularly as it relates to the Supreme Court and the Trump administration.

Now, in terms of, you know, the issues related to Israel and the Middle East, I think at least I can speak to my perspective, which is that I support Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish and democratic state. I support the aspirations of the Palestinian people to achieve the dignity, respect, autonomy, and self-determination that they appropriately desire. And we need to find a just and lasting peace between Israelis and the Palestinian people, which for me means a real authentic commitment to a two-state solution. A safe and secure Israel, living side-by-side with a prosperous Palestinian state designed to achieve dignity and self-determination for the Palestinian people.

Now, in terms of the races in New York, what’s interesting is that it certainly was the case that in some of those districts, which tended to be, you know, higher income districts in many parts of New York City, there was an outsized focus on issues connected to the Middle East. In other districts, for instance, in the south Bronx, Ritchie Torres was running against somebody who was heavily critical of Ritchie Torres’s position on Israel, and he won by 50 points. And so, listen, I think at the end of the day, you know, individual congressional districts, the beauty of it all, are made up by a diverse group of people who have a diverse set of perspectives on a wide variety of issues. I think for us as House Democrats, we’re just hopeful that everybody recognizes, once we get through this primary season, that the enemy is Donald Trump and MAGA extremism in terms of trying to bring about the type of America that we all desire. Where when you work hard and play by the rules, working class folks can live in a comfortable life, an affordable life, and a good life. That shouldn’t be too much to ask for in the United States of America, the wealthiest country in the history of the world.

PSAKI: Leader Hakeem Jeffries, it is a big, diverse coalition. I also think you learn a lot from elections too, sometimes. I really appreciate you joining me, thank you again.

Watch above via MS NOW.

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