Politico reports:

The pro-Israel lobby that’s pumped millions into Democratic primaries this year is facing the next test of its political power on the right in ruby-red Kentucky.

The American Israel Public Affairs Committee and other pro-Israel interest groups have uncorked over $9 million in a bid to unseat Republican Rep. Thomas Massie on Tuesday in a competitive primary that has shattered spending records. Prominent pro-Israel GOP donors have funneled millions more into a super PAC stood up by President Donald Trump’s political operation that has spent nearly $7 million on the race. Overall ad spending has topped $32 million, making it the most expensive House primary on record, per tracking firm AdImpact.

Pro-Israel groups got the opening they needed to spend big against the isolationist lawmaker whenTrump decided to front a primary challenger to Massie, presenting the first serious threat to his reelection in over a decade. The Republican Jewish Coalition Victory Fund and United Democracy Project, AIPAC’s super PAC, have attacked the incumbent for his votes against symbolic measures supporting Israel.

And unlike in recent Democratic primaries where United Democracy Project has used shell PACs to shield its involvement, the powerful pro-Israel group’s political arm is investing directly in taking Massie out.

“He’s the most anti-Israel Republican in the House,” United Democracy Project spokesperson Patrick Dorton said of Massie. “This is a competitive, close primary situation. It’s always hard to defeat incumbents. … But we think there’s an opportunity here.”

Tuesday’s primary will serve as a key test of the lobby’s power over a party whose historically ironclad support for Israel is starting to show cracks in the wake of wars in Gaza and Iran. Unfavorable views of the U.S. ally are on the rise in the GOP, driven by slumping support among younger Republicans. Jewish Republicans are grappling over how to confront antisemitism in the party. And some prominent conservatives — including key Massie allies like Tucker Carlson and former Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.), who have also fallen out of favor with Trump — are amplifying views that are harshly critical of Israel in the name of adhering to “America First.”

Massie insists he is “not antisemitic” and “not against Israel.” In an interview Friday, he warned against “trying to equate criticism of the policies of Benjamin Netanyahu with antisemitism.”

Still, Massie is centering the crush of cash from pro-Israel groups and donors in his campaign, which he has acknowleged is his toughest reelection fight yet given Trump’s involvement and the outside spending it’s unleashed. Massie has accused his opponents of trying to buy his seat by boosting his Trump-backed rival, former Navy SEAL Ed Gallrein. On Thursday, he announced a bill that attempts to force AIPAC to register under the Foreign Agents Registration Act — a notable escalation in the closing days of the campaign.

“When this race is over, whether I won or lost, that’s the story: Were they able to come in and take out a Republican who’s skeptical of Benjamin Netanyahu’s policies?” Massie told POLITICO last month after a candidate forum in his district. “My opponent wouldn’t even be out of the starting blocks if it weren’t for that money.” [Continue reading…]