Kamala Harris’s new Arab outreach director, Brenda Abdelall, reportedly once claimed that “Zionists” control “a lot of” American politics, according to a Thursday report by the Washington Free Beacon.
The report quotes Abdelall, an Egyptian-American lawyer and former Department of Homeland Security official, from a 2002 interview with the New York Sun, where she stated, “The Zionists have a strong voice in American politics. I would say they’re controlling a lot of it.” She made these comments while attending the American Muslim Council’s annual convention.
Abdelall is the latest addition to a team of Harris campaign advisers with a history of criticizing Israel and advocating for closer relations with Iran. This group includes Phil Gordon, Harris’s national security adviser, who is currently under congressional investigation for his ties to a member of an Iranian government influence network. Another adviser, Ilan Goldenberg, Harris’s liaison to the Jewish community, has been scrutinized for his connections to the anti-Israel group J Street and for supporting stronger ties with Tehran.
Harris also appointed the Rev. Jen Butler, a known critic of Israel, to oversee outreach to the faith community. Butler has faced criticism for her associations with anti-Semitic activist Linda Sarsour.
Abdelall was hired earlier this week to lead the Harris-Walz campaign’s outreach to Arab Americans. She joins Nasrina Bargzie, the campaign’s Muslim liaison, who has previously supported anti-Israel activism on campus and opposed claims by Jewish students that they were experiencing antisemitism.