Transcript [00:00] Brad Lander is running for Congress and [00:01] elections are less than two weeks away. [00:03] So why the hell is he in the West Bank? [00:07] Let's rewind a bit. On Wednesday, Brad [00:09] posted from the floor of a tour bus to [00:10] tell his followers that he was detained [00:12] by the IDF for harvesting olives. [00:14] >> We've been detained by the Israeli [00:16] military for harvesting olives. In his [00:19] caption, he wrote that Palestinians have [00:20] it far worse and that Palestinian [00:22] detentions are an element of state [00:24] sponsored ethnic cleansing, which he [00:26] also made a point to repeat from this [00:28] post 2 days earlier. [00:29] >> We're helping Palestinian farmers [00:31] harvest olives rather than be ethnically [00:33] cleansed from their land, [00:34] >> where he said that settler violence was [00:36] never far away and that the goal of the [00:38] trip was to shed a light on the reality [00:40] of the occupation. aside from him [00:42] conveniently omitting the everpresent [00:44] Palestinian terrorism against Jews in [00:46] the West Bank or the IDF's response that [00:48] his visit should have been coordinated [00:50] in advance and that about a 100 [00:52] coordinated harvest had already been [00:53] conducted or that those detained for [00:55] questioning were given food and drinks [00:57] and most were sent on their way. [00:59] >> So, police brought more than 70 of them, [01:01] including anti-Israel activists, to the [01:03] police station right behind me for [01:04] questioning where they got free food and [01:06] free drinks and that's all there is to [01:08] the show. You have to ask yourself, [01:09] wouldn't someone running for Congress in [01:11] New York be campaigning in New York? So, [01:14] why is Brad Lander in the Middle East? [01:16] It's simple. Instead of gaining votes by [01:18] attending local events, he's writing the [01:20] tale of the hottest story in the news [01:22] right now. And he's doing it through a [01:23] group called Protect the Harvest. [01:24] >> We're here with an effort called Protect [01:26] the Harvest. It's volunteers, American [01:28] Jews like me, bunch of rabbis, [01:29] >> which is actively encouraging other [01:31] activists to join these trips, even [01:33] giving them talking points. We're in the [01:35] West Bank this week as part of the [01:36] Protect the Harvest effort [01:38] >> because that's what he thinks will win [01:40] him votes. The sad part is he's probably [01:42] right. But while he's off picking olives [01:44] in the Middle East, he's not doing [01:46] anything for New Yorkers or Israelis or [01:49] Palestinians. Nothing. No solutions, no [01:53] peace, just empty and hollow clickbait [01:56] for Congress.
Brad Lander is running for Congress in New York.
With Election Day less than two weeks away, he’s in the West Bank picking olives and filming campaign content.
He says the trip is about exposing the “reality of the occupation.” But the timing makes the political calculation hard to miss.
Instead of spending the final stretch before an election talking to New Yorkers about New York, he’s attaching himself to one of the most viral international stories of the moment.
No new policy. No solution. No meaningful change for Israelis or Palestinians.
Just a foreign conflict turned into congressional clickbait.
