Jamaal Bowman sees his exit as a ‘political lynching’

Dec 17, 2024

What up, Recast fam. On today’s agenda:

An outgoing member of the Squad sounds off on how the Democratic Party must improve
Advocates still don’t think Joe Biden is doing enough on clemency
NYC Mayor Eric Adams had a whirlwind of a day

Photo illustration of torn-paper edge on picture of Jamaal Bowman speaking to press outside Capitol.

New York Rep. Jamaal Bowman lost in his bid for reelection to a Westchester-based seat in a primary earlier this year. | POLITICO illustration/Photo by Francis Chung/POLITICO

Outgoing Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-N.Y.) is fuming over the Democratic Party’s refusal to heed the lessons from the 2024 election.

As he sees it, Democrats lost because the party failed to connect with younger, working-class voters and voters of color — and yet, the party is still locked in a messy generational battle, with heavyweights in the old guard like Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi working to block Bowman's fellow Squad member Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) from the top post on the Oversight Committee, throwing her backing to Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-Va.).

“Now we have one of the most respected and recognizable members running for a leadership position, and we have a legend in Pelosi protecting another much older member? It continues to articulate a disconnect between where some in the party are and where the people want us to be,” Bowman said.

He’s got many reasons to be frustrated with party leadership.

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We sat down for a sort of exit interview with Bowman, who was ousted in his primary after the American Israel Public Affairs Committee and its affiliates spent a torrent of money to defeat him in favor of a more pro-Israel candidate, Rep.-elect George Latimer. Meanwhile, he tells The Recast, the Congressional Black Caucus and the Democratic Party at large didn’t do enough to stop the “public political lynching against me.”

Bowman reflected on his four years in Congress — and made a plea for the party to embrace what the Squad represents going forward into the 2026 cycle.

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This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

THE RECAST: How do you characterize your four years in Washington? And do you think that the fire alarm incident is going to overshadow your time here?

BOWMAN: The people in my district and people I meet across the country, they don't talk to me about that fire alarm incident at all. They talk about my fights for education, my calls for cease-fire between Israel and Gaza, my fights for justice reform.

The fight that I had with Congressman Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) right outside the House floor as it relates to the mass shootings that were happening in our schools — I think that sort of captures what my representation was all about, which was fighting nose-to-nose with anyone who is against standing up and protecting our children, and protecting our most marginalized communities.

Rep. Jamaal Bowman reacts as he walks in the U.S. Capitol.

Bowman walks to vote Dec. 7, 2023, on a resolution to censure him for pulling a fire alarm during a non-emergency in a House office building earlier that year. | Francis Chung/POLITICO

THE RECAST: What do you say to people who view your style as too confrontational? A lot of times, a Black man who, as we say, speaks with some bass in his voice, is often characterized as angry or can’t control their emotions.

BOWMAN: Obviously I disagree very strongly with that position. I think the Democratic Party needs passion. I think the Democratic Party needs authenticity, and the Democratic Party needs to be known as fighters.

I mean, we have an economic system where Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos together own more wealth than the bottom 50 percent of the entire country. Donald Trump got elected because the majority of people were angry and pissed off at the system where we have stagnant wages and an attack on unions, and corporations engaging in stock buybacks to improve profits of their companies while not creating the jobs.

But I'm not naive. I know American history, and to your point, when a Black man gets angry, the Black man gets harmed. Historically, we have literally hung from trees simply for being Black. We saw George Floyd being lynched — not hanging from a tree, but with a cop's knee. And if it's not the actual killing of a Black man, it's often a destroying of a Black man's career, one way or the other, which some might argue is what AIPAC tried to do to me by spending record amounts of money against me in my primary race.

Unfortunately, there was not enough pushback; it was us [Democrats] allowing AIPAC to commit a public political lynching against me.

Quote from Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-N.Y.) reads: "If it's not the actual killing of a Black man, it's often a destroying of a Black man's career ... which some might argue is what AIPAC tried to do to me."

THE RECAST: There was you, but also Rep. Cori Bush (D-Mo.), who was defeated in a Democratic primary this cycle with the help of AIPAC spending.

What role could the Congressional Black Caucus have played in helping you defend your seat?

BOWMAN: I wish the party would do more to stand up against special interests this cycle. AIPAC represented support of [Israel’s Prime Minister] Benjamin Netanyahu, who is carrying out the ongoing genocide in Gaza. And I wish the Democratic Party was a bit stronger in speaking out against that. I wish the CBC was a bit stronger in speaking out against that as well.

But we also saw pro-Trump super PAC money against me and my election. That's why so many people are calling for the removal of super PAC spending in Democratic primaries, because it was just outrageous how much was spent.

We crushed our opponent with working-class people of color. Crushed it. There were just way too many pro-Israel people in the district.

Reps. Cori Bush and Jamaal Bowman attend a vigil calling for a permanent ceasefire in Gaza.

Rep. Cori Bush (D-Mo.) Bowman attend a vigil alongside state legislators and faith leaders outside the White House to demand a Gaza cease-fire, Nov. 29, 2023. | Nathan Howard/AP

THE RECAST: You get elected in 2020, a year where the racial reckoning protests surrounding George Floyd were at its peak and progressives and the Squad were growing in strength.

Four years later, Trump is back and seemingly stronger. How do you make sense of our current political moment?

BOWMAN: I’ve always felt, even before I got to Congress, that the Squad was the best thing to happen to the Democratic Party.

And I've always been frustrated that [party leaders] haven’t really embraced the Squad in a real or strong enough way. And I think the conflict that continues — moderates versus progressives, or whatever you want to call it — has thus weakened the party. I mean, the Squad represents America: working class, young people and people of color, which are the three groups that the Democrats lost the most in this election.

So the party needs to embrace what the Squad represents a lot more.

THE RECAST: That does not seem to be happening, though. As you know, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is looking to lead the House Oversight Committee. But Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi is making calls to torpedo that bid in favor of Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-Va.). How do you see that?

Jamaal Bowman addresses a crowd from stage.

Bowman speaks to supporters at an election night watch party on June 25 in Yonkers. | Yuki Iwamura/AP

BOWMAN: Those reports are frustrating, and it exemplifies why many young people are turning away from the party and politics in general. Regardless of what Speaker Pelosi may think about Congresswoman Ocasio-Cortez, she's one of the most well-respected and well-liked elected officials in our country.

I can guarantee you that there are young people who want to see her in a leadership position. She works very hard to be effective at her job and I think it's the perfect time for her to be in leadership in Congress.

[This situation] continues to articulate a disconnect between where some in the party are — and where the people want us to be.

Billions in spending. Critical foreign aid. Immigration reform. The final weeks of 2024 could bring major policy changes. Inside Congress provides daily insights into how Congressional leaders are navigating these high-stakes issues. Subscribe today.

PARDON POLITICS HEAT UP

Joe Biden speaks in front of White House.

President Joe Biden speaks at a turkey pardoning ceremony at the White House in November. | Roberto Schmidt/AFP via Getty Images

With just 34 days left in Joe Biden’s presidency, the pressure campaign is ramping up to get him to go even bigger on clemency.

He unveiled a record-setting act of mercy that included nearly 1,500 commutations and 39 pardons. But advocates are still not satisfied.

“It's one of the most conservative interpretations of cases that have already been reviewed by the pardon attorney,” Patrice Willoughby, chief of policy and legislative affairs at the NAACP, tells The Recast.

The commutations last week, Willoughby points out, were limited to people already released from federal prison, with most serving at least a year of home confinement. Notably, the action did not include clemency for those who have served decades for marijuana possession or commutations for the 40 men on Death Row to life in prison sentences.

When Biden was seeking the presidency four years ago, he campaigned on a platform that included overhauling the criminal justice system to make it equitable and effective. Advocates say he’s fallen short of the vision he sold to voters.

“I felt catfished,” Monifa Bandele says of the administration’s most recent clemency announcement. She’s an activist with Movement For Black Lives, which has long advocated for abolishing the death penalty.

“Not only does it fall short,” she adds, “these people are currently not incarcerated … and so it feels very bait and switch.”

The White House vowed there will be more action taken before Biden leaves office. And it hasn’t ruled out preemptive pardons for those who Trump and his allies have threatened to target for prosecution.