Dr. Abdul El-Sayed\u2019s victory in the Democrats\u2019 U.S. Senate primary in Michigan last Tuesday was the latest sign of an emerging kingmaker in U.S. politics \u2013 a little-known super PAC that has tapped the wealth of a new cadre of Muslim-American mega-donors to support far-left candidates.<\/p>\n
Since it was launched just six months ago, American Priorities has channeled millions of dollars,\u00a0primarily\u00a0from\u00a0donors with Arab, Muslim, and\/or Middle Eastern backgrounds, to a string of winning candidates in high-profile races.<\/p>\n
Most of the entity-supported candidates are running on various\u00a0democratic-socialist policies,\u00a0such as single-payer health care, abolishing ICE, and slashing the military. But one area in which all candidates are aligned, consistent with the PAC\u2019s mission, is in their antagonism towards Israel.\u00a0<\/p>\n
With several such candidates considered locks for the U.S. House in deep blue districts and potentially Michigan\u2019s Senate seat in November, the independent expenditure vehicle is at the forefront of an increasingly politically influential and growing Muslim-American community \u2013 one that has ascended as the Israeli-Palestinian Arab conflict has become a central U.S. political issue following Hamas\u2019 massacre of 1,200 Israelis on October 7, 2023.<\/p>\n
In some ways, this is a very American story: As new groups of immigrants establish themselves in America, they eventually seek room for their voice in politics and culture. The key issues that have mobilized Muslim-Americans and the positions held by associated organizations, however, are seen by some as radical. Polls show such voters are significantly more hostile towards Israel and Jews, and tolerant toward groups and ideas the U.S. government has linked to terrorism than the general public \u2013 views reflected by the insurgent crop of leftist candidates they are increasingly backing.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Sen. Ted Cruz alleges that an effort is underway to, as Muslim Brotherhood leaders pledged in a 1991 memo, \u201cdestroy \u2026 Western civilization from within.\u201d<\/p>\n
A recent Senate Judiciary Committee\u00a0hearing\u00a0convened by Sen. Ted Cruz raised a more chilling issue. The Texas Republican alleged, and witnesses concurred that \u2013 in a\u00a0parallel to what has transpired in countries like France, Germany, and the United Kingdom \u2013 the Muslim Brotherhood, a subversive transnational Islamist organization, has cultivated an \u201centrenched institutional network\u201d in America of NGOs, advocacy groups, and political organizations to advance its leaders\u2019 recorded mission to \u201cdestroy \u2026 Western civilization from within.\u201d That network, terrorism expert Kyle Shideler found, has actively partnered with the Democratic Socialists of America, as part of what Cruz called a \u201cRed-Green Alliance,\u201d that Shideler said is \u201cunited around a revolutionary objective advocating for the overthrow of the U.S. Constitution.\u201d Democrats on the panel boycotted the hearing in protest, claiming in a statement\u00a0the Texas senator was \u201c[s]capegoating Muslims.\u201d<\/p>\n
While such partisan conflicts simmer, Muslim-Americans, who represent meaningful percentages of the population in dark blue New York and purple Michigan alike, are buoying the leftists increasingly dominating the Democrat Party. All indications are that this bloc is positioning itself not only to play an outsize role in shaping the next Congress but also in defining the 2028 presidential contest and America\u2019s future.\u00a0<\/p>\n
American Priorities was founded in February as a self-styled \u201ccountervailing force\u201d to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC). Though the largest such group, it is just one of several relatively new PACs with overlapping donors centered on opposition to Israel (see sidebar). The super PAC is led by Hannah Fertig, a strategist self-identifying\u00a0as Jewish who figured prominently in the 2020 presidential campaign of Bernie Sanders, who is also Jewish and a backer of staunch anti-Zionist candidates. The group\u2019s treasurer is Mark Hanna, an assembly district leader in New York who began his political career as an organizer\u00a0focusing on Muslim-related issues, including through forming Yalla Brooklyn, an NGO dedicated to mobilizing Arab and Muslim voters. American Priorities has pledged to put up $10 million this cycle to elect Democratic candidates who believe the party establishment is too pro-Israel. AIPAC and its affiliates have also poured tens of millions of dollars into recent election cycles as support for the Jewish state generally has declined\u00a0\u2013 a\u00a0long-term\u00a0trend\u00a0among Democrats correlating with the rise of the anti-Israel progressive left. To support its political claims, American Priorities cites polls showing a majority of Democratic voters\u00a0oppose\u00a0U.S. military aid to Israel, are more sympathetic to Palestinian Arabs than Israelis, and shun candidates who accept AIPAC support.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Many of the super PAC\u2019s top donors are first-generation Muslim immigrants who have made their fortunes in the U.S. They include:<\/p>\n
These are highly successful immigrants who, by all accounts, have lived the American dream. Nevertheless, the super PAC they have written six-figure checks to is\u00a0partnered\u00a0with groups advocating far-left social and economic policies aimed at fundamentally transforming America, including Justice Democrats, the Working Families Party, Leaders We Deserve, and the IMEU Policy Project.\u00a0<\/p>\n
RealClearInvestigations could not reach or did not receive responses to a series of questions posed to Mahrouq, the Mokhtarzada Brothers, Khan and other top American Priorities donors about their views.<\/p>\n
For his part, Mahrouq told CNN in connection with a July 2026\u00a0report\u00a0that he believes in \u201ca U.S. foreign policy in the Middle East that respects the dignity of all people in the region.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cMy focus is not partisan politics, but rather promoting policies that strengthen America, encourage opportunity, and serve the interests of American citizens. I believe decisions affecting our country should be made based on what is best for the United States, independent of pressure from any foreign government, foreign interest group or partisan agenda,\u201d he told\u00a0Jewish Insider\u00a0via a spokesperson earlier this year.<\/p>\n
Some on the right in the U.S. and Israel alike have advocated for phasing out aid \u2014 on good faith grounds that it would redound to both countries\u2019 benefit.<\/p>\n