Fact Checker: Did eight Democratic candidates 'boycott' the AIPAC conference?
By Glenn Kessler Glenn Kessler The Fact Checker Email Bio Follow March 27 at 3:00 AM “As I stand before you, eight Democrat candidates for president are actually boycotting this very conference. So let me be clear on this point, anyone who aspires to the highest office in the land should not be afraid to stand with the strongest supporters of Israel in America. It is wrong to boycott Israel, and it is wrong to boycott AIPAC.
So that gives us eight. There are also at least four others — Sen. Amy Klobuchar , former Colorado governor John Hickenlooper, former congressman John Delaney of Maryland and Rep. Tulsi Gabbard . So that adds up to 12 Democrats running for president who did not attend.Only one, Sanders, explicitly said he was not attending because of policy differences: A spokesman said he was “concerned about the platform AIPAC is providing for leaders who have expressed bigotry and oppose a two-state solution.
Gillibrand has also addressed AIPAC in the past. “Senator Gillibrand was not planning to speak at the policy conference and will not be attending. As she does every year, she will meet separately with her New York constituents,” a spokesman said. Delaney’s national press secretary, Michael Starr Hopkins, said “we did not boycott AIPAC; we had a scheduling conflict.” He passed along a quote from Delaney: “I am disappointed that a preexisting commitment prevents me from attending AIPAC this year. In no way should my schedule conflict be viewed as me not standing with Israel. … Israel is being unfairly attacked and is subject to an effort to delegitimize its existence with the BDS movement.
The Jewish Telegraphic Agency noted that changes in AIPAC procedures made the conference less attractive to people actively campaigning. The Pinocchio Test How one evaluates the accuracy of Pence’s claim turns in part on definitions. There is only one active Democratic presidential candidate — Booker — who showed up at the convention center. But he only met with constituents, just like three of his colleagues who did so on Capitol Hill. Aides said they were acting as senators, not presidential candidates.
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