The politics of the Olympics is unlike daily politics. Indeed, it is about something profoundly deeper, related to identity, culture, national struggles for liberation, equality, race and, yes, freedom. 

Nina Turner lost a big lead in the Ohio-11 congressional race, apparently because of an onslaught of negative ads that were paid for by the Democratic Majority for Israel but that said nothing about Israel, just questioned Turner’s commitment to Joe Biden. Turner blamed “dark money,” but declined to make Israel an issue in the race. Even though the Democratic base overwhelmingly blames Israel and not the Palestinians for the latest fighting.

Progressive leader Nina Turner was defeated in the closely-watched Ohio primary for Congress tonight by establishment candidate Shontel Brown, according to reports in the media. The victory is a big win for the pro-Israel lobby inside the Democratic Party– and a blow to the insurgent left wing in the party.

Ben & Jerry’s acceded to activist pressure to stop selling in the occupied territories because the Movement for Black Lives insisted that Palestine was in its agenda for racial justice and when Israel committed its May massacre in Gaza, there were 300 protesters outside the Ben & Jerry’s store in Burlington chanting “Shame, Shame, Shame.” An organizer says, “It shook up the Ben & Jerry’s people.”

The extremist response by Israeli leaders to Ben & Jerry’s — that it is antisemitic or terrorist — ignores the fact that McDonald’s has refused to operate in Israeli settlements for many years. McDonald’s just didn’t make a big splash about it. Ben & Jerry’s very public move is fostering the BDS campaign that sees Israeli human violations on both sides of the Green Line.

The Israeli Supreme Court deferred its decision on the forcible eviction of the four Palestinian families in Sheikh Jarrah on Monday, following months of protests and international pressure to stop the displacement of Palestinians from the East Jerusalem neighborhood. In the long-awaited court hearing on Monday, the court refused to rule on the status of ownership over the land, instead proposing that the Palestinians remain in their homes under the status of “protected residents.”

“Why are they spending all of that money on little old me? Inquiring minds want to know,” Democratic candidate for Congress Nina Turner says of “millions” pouring into the Ohio primary from special interests. One obvious source of the money is the pro-Israel crowd, which has embraced Turner’s rival Shontel Brown, who says the special relationship between the U.S. and Israel will help the black community fight “hatred” and “persecution.”