During his Senate primary victory speech on Tuesday, U.S. Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA) was nearly drowned out by pro-Palestine protesters, highlighting the deep divisions within the Democratic party.
Schiff won in a competitive race that included fellow Democrats U.S. Reps. Katie Porter and Barbara Lee, as well as retired baseball star Steve Garvey, who is running on the Republican ticket.
As Schiff attempted to address his supporters on Tuesday evening, he was met with a chorus of boos from pro-Palestine protesters. The veteran congressman was forced to halt his speech as a large group of protesters chanted “ceasefire now,” reflecting ongoing intra-party discord over the Gaza conflict.
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The progressive faction of the Democratic party has repeatedly criticized President Biden and other Democrat leaders for their failure to broker peace between Israel and Hamas. Several left-leaning Democrats, including Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI), have accused Biden of supporting genocide and have declined to pledge their support for the upcoming November elections.
“We are so fortunate to live in a democracy where we all have the right to protest,” Schiff said as the activists continued their chants. His supporters attempted to counter with chants of “Adam, Adam” but were largely overshadowed by the pro-Palestine contingent.
Security personnel were seen escorting some protesters out, but due to their widespread presence in the crowd, it was impossible to remove them all.
Schiff briefly attempted to speak over the crowd before prematurely ending his remarks.
Schiff’s campaign spent over $12 million on ads depicting Garvey as a “MAGA extremist” who is “too conservative for California,” aiming to prevent a runoff election with one of his Democrat rivals in November. Schiff-aligned groups spent an additional $7 million on ads targeting Garvey, which boosted his popularity among Republican voters and increased his name recognition in the state, according to analysts.
Despite California’s strong Democratic leanings, Schiff is expected to defeat Garvey in the November runoff. However, some Democrats are expressing concern over Schiff’s strategy, fearing that promoting Garvey could negatively impact other Democrats across the state in November.
Adam Schiff’s Super PAC gave millions to Steve Garvey’s GOP campaign.
Down ballot races that would stay blue if Porter or Lee were the other nominee, are now up for grabs.
ANY seat that flips Red in CA in Nov, you can thank Adam Schiff.
Another reason why Any Blue Won’t Do. pic.twitter.com/c1nRYnslK0
— jenforcongress2024 (@JenChangeFL) March 6, 2024
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