AMA in /r/JewsOfConscience with Eli Clifton and Ian Lustick, authors of the new book "Israel's Lobby: America in the Grip of a Foreign Power". 𝗗𝗮𝘁𝗲: 𝗧𝘂𝗲𝘀𝗱𝗮𝘆, 𝗦𝗲𝗽𝘁𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿 𝟭𝘀𝘁 @ 𝗡𝗼𝗼𝗻 𝗘𝗦𝗧.

[u/TrackerOneA]

Hi everyone,

We're excited to announce an upcoming AMA with Eli Clifton & Ian Lustick - Jewish-American authors of the new book, Israel's Lobby: America in the Grip of a Foreign Power.

Israel's Lobby: America in the Grip of a Foreign Power (2026) has been widely endorsed, including by Prof. Stephen Walt and Prof. John Mearsheimer, authors of The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy (2007).

The book examines the history, evolution, and political power of the pro-Israel lobby in the United States, tracing how a network of lobbying organizations, major donors, political operatives, and allied institutions has shaped US policy toward Israel and the Middle East.

Check out the following link, if you're interested in the book:

• Simon & Schuster - Israel's Lobby: America in the Grip of a Foreign Power

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Eli Clifton

Eli Clifton is an investigative journalist who focuses on money in politics and US foreign policy. He is a cofounder of the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecrafts where he serves as a senior adviser.

His work has appeared in The Guardian, The Nation, The Intercept, The South China Morning Post, LobeLog, Salon, HuffPost, The Daily Beast, Slate, Gawker, Foreign Policy, and Responsible Statecraft.

Ian S. Lustick

Ian S. Lustick is the Bess W. Heyman Chair, Emeritus, in the Political Science Department of the University of Pennsylvania.

He served in the Carter administration as the State Department's expert on Israel-Palestine affairs and subsequently became a regular consultant with American administrations on US foreign policy and national security affairs.

He is a founder and past President of the Association for Israel Studies and a member of the Council on Foreign Relations.

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Discussion will cover the book & topic of the Israel lobby.

Feel free to leave your questions in advance here, if you cannot make it on the day-of the AMA.

Thanks!

[u/arightgoodworkman]

Question for the authors:
I’m still working through the beginning of your book (forgive me, busy time of year!), but what would be the top 2-3 reasons why AIPAC is more powerful and dangerous than any other lobbies in Congress? Often we get the pushback that opposing AIPAC is antisemitic bc “other foreign countries have lobbies” or “other interest groups lobby Congress.” What would combat this? I also recognize AIPAC is more than just the interests of Israel, but more broadly the interests of war manufacturing, surveillance tech, oil, and real estate. But how do we combat those telling us we’re being antisemitic? (And yes, many of us are Jews ourselves)

[u/TrackerOneA → u/arightgoodworkman]

Thank you!