White House press secretary nominee is raising concerns in pro-Israel circles

After the president’s announcement on Thursday afternoon, Jean-Pierre, a Haitian American, was brought to the White House’s daily briefing by Psaki. Jean-Pierre will assume the role after Psaki’s exit on May 13.

“Karine not only brings the experience, talent and integrity needed for this difficult job, but will continue to lead the way in communicating about the work of the Biden-Harris administration on behalf of the American people,” the president said in a statement.

News of her appointment also came with criticism about her role as national spokesperson and senior adviser with the left-wing political group MoveOn.org from April 2016 to August 2020, a group that supported the boycott of AIPAC and challenged anti-BDS laws.
 

In a 2019 op-ed in Newsweek, Jean-Pierre said that candidates cannot call themselves a progressive if they supported AIPAC.
 

“Unfortunately, AIPAC’s policy and conference speaker choices aren’t its only problems. Its severely racist, Islamophobic rhetoric has proven just as alarming,” Jean-Pierre wrote. “The organization has become known for trafficking in anti-Muslim and anti-Arab rhetoric while lifting up Islamophobic voices and attitudes.”