Citing the decision of Rep. Bob Good (R-Va.) to vote against emergency aid for Israel, the Republican Jewish Coalition endorsed Good’s opponent, John McGuire, in Virginia’s 5th Congressional District.
A former Navy SEAL, McGuire is currently a state representative. He is a “conservative stalwart who made his support for Israel clear,” according to the RJC.
“If you don’t stand with the Jewish community, if you don’t stand with Israel, Republican or Democrat, the RJC will work to defeat you,” stated Matt Brooks, CEO of the RJC.
Brooks stated that Good “shamefully voted against this critical support for the Jewish state, abandoning Israel as it continues to fight for its very survival after the worst massacre of Jews since the Holocaust.”
“This vote showed who Israel’s true friends are and exposed those like Congressman Bob Good, who are not,” Brooks said.
“For the pro-Israel community, this is not the first time concerns have been raised about Rep. Bob Good’s undermining of U.S. support for Israel,” he added. “Good also voted against passage of an Israel aid bill in February, and he opposed a defense authorization bill that included important funding for joint U.S.-Israel defense programs, including Iron Dome.”
McGuire posted that he appreciates RJC’s support.
“Bob Good clearly doesn’t understand what it means to stand by a friend. But Trump understood this—he was the most pro-Israel president in history,” McGuire wrote. “Virginia voters should know that Bob Good backstabbed Israel the same way he backstabbed Trump.”
Good, the chair of the House Freedom Caucus, has posted that his support for Israel is “unshakeable” and that while he supported funding for Israel in December by cutting IRS funding, the current legislation “includes $9 billion for Gaza that will inevitably fund Hamas terrorists.”
“Our country had a policy not to negotiate with terrorists. Now we are funding them,” he added, “$9 billion is going to Hamas in the Israel Aid bill. Republican senators are our last chance to stop this.”
On Wednesday, Good wrote that “antisemitism has been rapidly growing since Israel was attacked by terrorists—especially on college campuses. We have witnessed the world turn its back on Israel and under the Biden administration, America is not treating them much better.”