J Street raises money off raising money off J Street-META UPDATE

I wrote earlier about how J Street remained in the political mix, despite its George Soros-related problems earlier this month.

Last night, the group’s political action committee hosted Rep. Gary Ackerman (D-N.Y.) and two other House members for a fundraiser in New York.

Now, the PAC wants backers to outmatch whatever Joel Pollak, who has called on  Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill) to distance herself from J Street, raises tonight at a Skokie, Ill. fundraiser where J Street is bound to be the bogey man in the room.

J Street claims to have outraised Pollak at a previous encounter, when he earned $30,000 from an appearance by his old law school professor and frequent J Street critic, Alan Dershowitz. J Street says it got $45,000 in online contributions from an email blast-appeal.

Schakowsky has endorsed tonight’s effort, signalling the continued association with the group of, with Ackerman, another Jewish lawmaker with strong AIPAC ties.

She’s quoted in the J Street PAC email blast as saying:

I reject calls by my GOP opponent to return campaign contributions from JStreetPAC and his cynical attempt to turn Israel into a partisan wedge issue at this delicate and potentially historic moment. I stand behind President Obama’s efforts to provide Israel with the lasting peace and security that only a two-state solution can achieve. And I commend JStreetPAC for its ongoing efforts to encourage debate and broaden the pro-Israel tent.

The Pollak flyer — "The U.S. and Israel, Winning the Media War" is how the event is billed — does not mention J Street, or for that matter, Schakowsky; but with J Street uber-critic Jennifer Rubin on board, the likelihood of the "pro-Israel, pro-peace" lobby being raised is on a par with the pope’s Catholicism, etc.

Pollak also released a poll showing him trailing Schakowsky 30-48 percent. The New York Times Nate Silver’s FiveThirtyEight forecast has Schakowsky at 68-30. Either way, he’s at 30.

J Street PAC uses Rubin and another speaker, Daniel Pipes of the Middle East Forum, in its pitch, signed by Isaac Luria, the PAC’s communications director .

Yes, this is the same Jennifer Rubin who claims that American Jews have a "sick addiction" to liberal values.  And yes, this is the same Daniel Pipes who has opposed every peace process in the past two decades and said that a vibrant American Muslim community "presents true dangers to American Jews." They’ll be following the lead of Alan Dershowitz, who headlined his own anti-Jan fundraiser this past summer.

I couldn’t paint you a clearer picture of what we’re up against. And you won’t find a clearer picture of who we support than Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky.

UPDATE: Okay, now this is going meta: Pollak is raising money off of J Street’s raising money off of his raising money. The latest:

It is radical groups like J Street–sponsored by George Soros and foreign donors–that have made Israel into a political football. Today, while 85% of Republicans support Israel, only 48% of Democrats do. That is the direct result of pressure groups like J Street, together with the Obama administration’s ill treatment of Israel, and the weakness of Democratic leaders in confronting the anti-Israel radicals in their midst.

Jan Schakowsky has decided where she stands: with J Street and against Israel’s strongest defenders–not just Rubin and Pipes, but Elie Wiesel, Alan Dershowitz, Joe Lieberman, and Malcolm Hoenlein, each of whom has been attacked by J Street in recent months.

A true leader on Israel would not stand with a group that lies about taking foreign money and trashes America’s best ally. Schakowsky has to go.

Take a stand and fight J Street–tonight!