In the crowded ninth congressional Democratic primary, Bruce Leon is making moves worthy of news. This report comes from a Friend of the Blog.
Bruce Leon Finds Attention in 17-Way Primary
Chicago Democratic Committeeman for the 50th ward was recently endorsed by a Hindu group called Americans 4 Hindus. My guess is that a big reason they like Leon, who is leaning heavily into the fact that he is Jewish, is the fact that he is Jewish.
We know Muslims are growing in political power. We know there is conflict between Jews and Muslims.
There is also conflict between Hindus and Muslims. The Hindu group might see Leon as a check against Muslim power which Hindus, along with many Jews, see as threatening.
The main candidates who stand to benefit from growing Muslim power are definitely Kat Abughazaleh who is Palestinian and Bushra Amiwala who is Pakistani.
Kat Abughazaleh poses in orange chair for GQ; Bushra Amiwala attends a conference.
Another thing getting noticed is Leon’s mailer attack against Laura Fine who is polling in third behind Daniel Biss and Kat Abughazaleh.
People expected Biss to be a runaway favorite with Jewish voters but it appears that Fine is racking up many endorsements from prominent Jewish Democrats. See the full list here.
Leon has rolled out a list of his own. A group of Orthodox rabbis endorsed him.
(Jews make up a single digit % of voters in the district but a majority of endorsements that Fine highlights with photos.)
In the mailer, see how Leon defends school choice while tying that to Jewish interests.
On one side of the flyer, the colors blue and yellow are used.
It says Leon is pro-union but puts children and families first.
It resonates with voters who support school choice which is a more moderate and less radical stance that stands out in the Democratic primary.
It also mentions how he himself donated 2 million dollars to needy schools.
This all sounds like an appeal to the center and right coming from a Democrat.
The other side is even more interesting.
That’s where he attacks Laura Fine.
The headline is in red and it says, “LAURA FINE HURT OUR JEWISH DAY SCHOOLS.”
It mentions her being against the Invest in Kids scholarship which was a program Democrats in Springfield got rid of at the request of the public school lobby.
It even directly calls out the Chicago Teachers Union.
One can view Leon’s messaging as going against the left, but he deliberately targeted Fine who is getting a lot of Jewish endorsements and he specifically mentioned “Jewish day schools” which he says Fine harmed in larger letters.
He doesn’t say Catholic or Lutheran parochial schools or Muslim learning centers even though the removal of the Invest in Kids scholarship hurt private schools in general.
Leon must believe Fine is doing well with Jewish voters and is making an attempt to win them over.
Looking at her endorsements, there is logic to this strategy.
Also on this side of the flyer is a picture of Fine shouting which is right out of the anti-cat-lady playbook.
She is at a protest.
Behind her is a group of protesters from the CTU in their red CTU shirts holding up a sign that says take back Chicago.
The most prominent protester besides Fine is an overweight black woman.
Coincidence?
Finally, the background against this large point about Fine harming Jewish day schools shows large bills of money.
Look closely at the top.
To summarize, you see the claim that “Laura Fine hurt Jewish day schools,” you see the money, and then below that there’s shrieking Laura Fine and a fat black woman and a leftist mob from Chicago marching towards the viewer (you).
There is an unspoken, implied message here and there is a target audience.
People can skip most of the text and they’ll still get the message.
For more info on the state of this congressional race, read this Evanston Now article which is where the photo of Leon’s literature came from. Its author is providing great coverage.
