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<\/a><\/p>\nFormer U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris, who is in the midst of a 15-city book tour following the release of her new book \u201c107 Days,\u201d recounting her presidential campaign against President Donald Trump. (Mario Tama\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Critics of the Biden administration\u2019s support for Israel during the war in Gaza that began on Oct. 7, 2023, have alleged that the party was suppressing its internal findings about the election, which returned President Donald Trump to office, because it would show that Biden\u2019s stance was deeply unpopular.<\/p>\n
Axios reported in February that the top Democrats who worked on the report concluded that Harris \u201clost significant support because of the Biden administration\u2019s approach to the war in Gaza.\u201d<\/p>\n
If that\u2019s the case, it\u2019s not reflected in the document that CNN published on Thursday morning. Portions of the document were not included, however, with notes saying that the executive summary and conclusion had not been shared by the authors.<\/p>\n
The report points to 10 different \u201cstrategic implications\u201d for Democrats, including that \u201canti-Trump sentiment has limits,\u201d male voters \u201crequire direct engagement,\u201d and that voter demographics are not enough to determine which candidate they\u2019ll prefer.<\/p>\n
CNN reported that the document was written by Democratic strategist Paul Rivera and annotated by the DNC. The DNC released the document following questions raised by CNN, the network reported.<\/p>\n
DNC Chairman Ken Martin told CNN that the report was not yet ready to be publicly released, but concluded that withholding it would create a larger distraction than releasing an incomplete version. \u201cI sincerely apologize,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor full transparency, I am releasing the report as we received it, in its entirety, unedited and unabridged,\u201d Martin said. \u201cIt does not meet my standards, and it won\u2019t meet your standards, but I am doing this because people need to be able to trust the Democratic Party and trust our word.\u201d<\/p>\n
Halie Soifer, CEO of the Jewish Democratic Council of America, said she\u2019d expected to see analysis related to Gaza and Israel in the report.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs soon as it arrived in my inbox I immediately searched for the word \u2018Gaza\u2019 expecting there to be an entire section focused on this issue,\u201d Soifer said in an interview. \u201cSo I was surprised that, in fact, there was nothing \u2014 on Gaza, Israel, Jewish voters, non-Jewish voters, it was just nothing.\u201d<\/p>\n
Though rumors had swirled about the role that Gaza played in the autopsy, Soifer said she heard from a DNC official that there was \u201cnever\u201d a section focusing on the issue, \u201cat least not in writing in this report.\u201d<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, the Institute for Middle East Understanding, a pro-Palestinian nonprofit, called on Martin to release \u201cthe information that the author of the autopsy told us clearly and unambiguously, which is that DNC officials\u2019 review of their own data found Biden\u2019s support to be a net-negative for Democrats in 2024.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rivera, the report\u2019s author, met with the IMEU and told them that the war in Gaza hurt Democrats in the 2024 election, according to reporting by Axios.<\/p>\n
Soifer said the JDCA was not contacted by Rivera, and did not meet with him. <\/p>\n
While Soifer was surprised by the report\u2019s omission of Gaza and Israel, pro-Israel lobbying group Democratic Majority for Israel took it as a sign that support for Israel does not have a detrimental effect on Democrats\u2019 chances in elections.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe need to learn the lessons of 2024 so we can be successful in 2026, 2028 and beyond,\u201d said Brian Romick, DMFI\u2019s president. <\/p>\n
\u201cWhat is clear \u2014 autopsy or not \u2014 is a majority of Americans, including Democrats, support the U.S.-Israel relationship, and that support was not the reason Vice President Harris lost the election,\u201d he said. A DMFI staffer pointed to polling from last fall showing that a majority of Democrats support the U.S.-Israel relationship.<\/p>\n
A spokesperson for the Republican Jewish Coalition pointed to the episode as an example of infighting among Democrats.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Democrats are tearing themselves apart as they appease the ascendant far-left extremists in their party, from Maine to Pennsylvania,\u201d wrote Sam Markstein, alluding to candidates Graham Platner and Chris Rabb.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s bad policy and it\u2019s bad politics. The GOP is the only party where it\u2019s safe to be proudly Jewish and pro-Israel,\u201d Markstein wrote. \u201cRepublicans are righteously taking on the tough fights and winning, while Democrats continue to whistle past the political graveyard.\u201d<\/p>\n