ISTANBUL 

The US is a “munitions depot and an ATM” for Israel’s aggressive policies towards all of its neighbors, Michael Rectenwald, founder of the Anti-Zionist America Political Action Committee (AZAPAC), told Anadolu.

Rectenwald said Israel plays an active role in US domestic and foreign policy.

The group was founded to break the “overwhelming” Zionist influence in the US through electoral means and cultural persuasion, he added.

He said that Israel was able to commit “crimes against humanity” only because the US openly supported the genocide in Gaza, which has killed more than 70,000 people, mostly women and children, and injured nearly 171,000 others since October 2023.

“I thought that the only way to stop this and future such horrors from happening would be to get rid of Zionism from the US government,” he underscored, adding that the government is “subservient” to Israel, which became “very clear” with the Trump administration.

“Everything they've done and everything they've said in word and deed, they've made clear that Israel is like the main object of policy for the United States -- not only foreign policy, but even domestic policy,” he said.

Replacing Zionists in US Congress

Rectenwald emphasized that American taxpayers are “being robbed,” paying for Israel’s genocide in Gaza.

He said the way to stop “this infringement,” is by replacing Zionists in the US Congress and Senate.

“So we're focusing on getting anti-Zionist candidates into Congress and to eliminate the Zionists from Congress. We can't do it all at once, but we're trying to get a group of anti-Zionists elected in the midterms, if possible,” he said.

Rectenwald said that Israel gives huge amounts of money to American politicians through lobbying firms and keeps them in fear of being opposed to Israel and Zionism. The US political class has also been blackmailed by Israeli operatives, he thinks.

He noted that strong US political and military support for Israel has led to widespread anti-American sentiment across the Middle East.

“That's why you have chants like ‘Death to America’ resounding in Iran. It's not because they hate us intrinsically, it's because of our affiliation and unconditional support of Israel,” he said.

Group's main purpose

Rectenwald said that if the group succeeds, all military and financial aid to Israel will cease completely, and Israel will be prevented from influencing US domestic politics.

“So we're looking at overturning and de-Zionizing the US government entirely. And that would mean we would no longer be Israel's slave, which we are now,” he said.

“We are a munitions depot and an ATM for Israel,” Rectenwald stressed, adding that Israel “extorts unbelievable amounts of money” from the US to support its aggressive foreign policy towards all of its neighbors.