Things are not OK at my alma mater, the University of Michigan. That's because the Michigan Democratic Party has selected attorney Amir Makled to be their candidate for regent of the board, essentially a seat on the committee that governs the university. It's a statewide elected position, like governor or senator. Currently, the board has six Democrats and two Republicans.
Amir Makled essentially primaried an incumbent Democrat, board member Jordan Acker. You can probably guess why: Acker is seen as too moderate, and in particular too positively disposed toward Israel. He is himself Jewish, and has been subjected to anti-Semitic harassment. So, apparently to appease radical pro-Palestinian activists on campus, the Dems are going with Makled.
And that's a big problem, because Makled is a dangerous radical and an anti-Semite.
That's not a claim I make lightly. I've been clear time and time again on "Rising" that I don't think criticism of Israel is inherently anti-Semitic; in fact, I share many of the criticisms of the Israeli government that are held by the right and the left. But I do draw the line at referring to Jew as demons and praising Hamas and Hezbollah.
In previous, deleted tweets, Makled retweeted a post by Candace Owens that said the people of Israel "lie, steal, cheat, murder and blackmail." "They are demons and our enemies." He also retweeted a post bemoaning the death of Hassan Nasrallah, a former leader of Hezbollah and terrorist, as a martyr.
Brandon Dillon, former chair of the Michigan Democratic Party, said that Makled is unacceptable.
In a column for The Detroit News, he writes that Makled "also shared an antisemitic meme using a slur originally coined by ISIS, and he amplified content calling for Jews to be banned from serving in Congress. ... These are not isolated missteps or comments taken out of context. They reflect a broader pattern of poor judgment that should raise serious concerns about his fitness for public office."
Well, this all made no difference to the party. Here were progressive activists celebrating his win
The Manhattan Institute's Jesse Arn writes on X: "Let this be a wake-up call for self-respecting Jewish Democrats, especially those from my home state of Michigan, and any other Democrats who would prefer their party not descend into the depths of full-blown Islamoleftism: you are losing your fight."
By the way, unsurprisingly Makled’s other views are no less radical. Here he was campaigning with Senate candidate Abdul El Sayed, another radical, calling for the restoration of DEI.
Those are views shared by many Democrats, to be fair. But not all Democrats openly support terrorists and malign Jewish people. Just the ones rising in prominence in my home state, I suppose.
Robby Soave is co-host of The Hill's commentary show "Rising" and a senior editor for Reason Magazine. This column is an edited transcription of his daily commentary.