Leading Jewish political groups acted within the first 10 days of Vice President Kamala Harris officially entering the presidential race to launch five and six figure ads in critical swing states targeting Jewish voters.
The Jewish Democratic Council of America (JDCA) released its six figure ad this past week, with a photo of Harris lighting a Hanukka menorah with her Jewish husband, Doug Emhoff.
“Jewish Americans stand with Kamala Harris because she stands with us,” the narrator says before cutting to clips of Harris vocalizing her support for Israel and denouncing antisemitism.
“For our values, abortion access and preserving democracy, the choice is clear,” the narrator says. “Kamala Harris for president.”
The levels of excitement for Harris seen within the Jewish community and beyond is unlike any seen in this election cycle, JDCA CEO Halie Soifer, who once served as then-Senator Harris’s national security adviser, told The Jerusalem Post.
The Jewish community has warmly embraced Harris and is excited about her candidacy, according to Soifer, who then echoed the ad saying American Jews know Harris stands with the Jewish community.
“Whether it’s for support of Israel, combating antisemitism, defending democracy and protecting abortion access, these are key issues for Jewish voters,” Soifer said.
JDCA has heard great feedback on the ad, Soifer said, as people not only like hearing Harris in her own words, but also like seeing the images of Harris and Emhoff which demonstrate they are a part of the Jewish community and have brought Jewish symbols and traditions into the vice president’s residence.
The ad reminds people of the historic nature of Harris’s candidacy as not only would she be the first female president, Emhoff would be the first Jewish spouse of a president, Soifer said.
Soifer accused Republicans of operating a misinformation campaign about Harris and her record on standing with the Jewish community.
Republicans know they can’t speak to voters about domestic policy issues, according to Soifer, because there’s not one domestic policy issue on which the Republican party aligns with the majority of Jewish voters.
“They choose to talk about Israel. And [Republicans] in this case are using disinformation, misinformation and lies. Even vitriol,” Soifer added, referencing recent comments from former president Donald Trump in which he repeated attacks on Jewish Americans who vote Democratic and seemingly agreed with a radio host who called Emhoff a “crappy Jew.”
In the interview on Tuesday with WABC radio, Trump accused Harris of not liking Israel or Jewish people.
“You know it, I know it and everybody knows it and nobody wants to say it,” Trump said on-air, adding Harris “dislikes Jewish people and Israel more than Biden did.”
Later in the interview, he likened Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer to a Palestinian, repeating the slur he used against Biden during June’s presidential debate.
There’s a reason in 2016 and 2020 that Trump never got more than 25% of the Jewish vote, Soifer said, because Jewish voters despise him.
JDCA’s ad will run on TV across Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina and Wisconsin.
Republican Jewish Coalition has an ad of its own
The Republican Jewish Coalition released its five figure digital ad immediately following Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s address before Congress.
The ad focuses on Harris’s absence from Netanyahu’s speech as she attended a pre-planned sorority luncheon, starting with the ad’s title, “Kamala Harris: Her priorities are NOT our priorities.”
“Americans were rightly concerned when Kamala Harris sided with pro-Hamas demonstrators shouting antisemitic and anti-Israel slogans, disrupting our campuses and harassing Jewish students,” the narrator says.
“Now, in her first test as a presidential candidate, Kamala snubs Israel again, instead of supporting America’s strongest ally by attending Prime Minister Netanyahu’s speech to Congress, Kamala Harris decides to go to a sorority luncheon,” the ad continues.
“Sorority luncheon? She can’t be serious,” the ad concludes. “Kamala Harris’s priorities are not our priorities.”
In a statement with the ad release, RJC CEO Matt Brooks called Harris’s absence from Netanyahu’s speech “a shanda.”
“The RJC will hold her accountable,” Brooks added. “Starting today, RJC will be running ads in key battleground states, targeting Jewish voters utilizing the best data operation in politics.”
If you thought Joe Biden was bad, Brooks concluded the statement, Kamala Harris is far worse on issues of top concern for pro-Israel voters.
RJC did not respond to the Post’s request for comment on Trump’s interview remarks from this past week or answer what are the implications of a former president criticizing Americans of a certain religion for how they vote.
The Post also asked RJC if they denounce the use of Palestinian as a slur.