Mandel Takes on Foreign Aid
Josh Mandel Image by courtesy of josh mandel
Josh Nathan-Kazis May 24, 2012
A new ad by Republican Ohio Senate candidate Josh Mandel, whom the Forward profiled a couple of weeks ago, slams incumbent Democrat Sherrod Brown for his support for foreign aid in a new ad.
That could raise questions for some backers of Mandel, who has made much of his pro-Israel credentials. Israel advocates have traditionally been wary of calls to cut foreign aid, as aid to Israel is allocated through the same legislative process as aid to other nations.
Mandel’s new ad, which was posted online yesterday and has aired in some Ohio markets, charges that Brown “sent billions of dollars to foreign countries.”
Mandel spokesman Travis Considine clarified the charge in an email with the Forward, insisting that he wasn’t calling for less aid to Israel.
“Josh is steadfast in his support for Israel,” Considine wrote. “What concerns him is sending $1 billion in foreign aid to countries like Pakistan.”
Recent polls have Mandel running nearly neck-and-neck with Brown.
