Erin McClelland, the Democratic nominee to become the next Pennsylvania Treasurer, raised concerns about foreign policy, credit worthiness and hackers to explain why she would not use state money to buy Israel Bonds in remarks published Tuesday.
McClelland won her party’s nomination after establishing herself the only candidate opposed to Pennsylvania Treasurer Stacy Garrity’s decision to purchase $20 million in Israel Bonds, and in remarks to the Pittsburgh Jewish Chronicle, claimed Garrity and other Republicans are inappropriately taking sides in a foreign conflict while neglecting financial and security risks.
“We’ve never seen the treasurer take sides in foreign conflicts before,” she claimed to the outlet. “That’s a relatively new construct we’re seeing that is becoming very prevalent in the Republican Party.”
Despite McClelland’s claims, Garrity’s office previously noted in a press release that Pennsylvania has purchased Israel Bonds “for more than 30 years.”
The Chronicle reported McClelland (pictured above) also cited Moody Investor Services recent decision to downgrade Israel’s credit rating from A1 to A2 is a reason “not to invest in the Jewish state.”
Israel’s credit ranking was downgraded by the S&P Global Rankings and Moody’s Investors Service in April amid rising tensions between the country and Iran, with credit agencies previously issuing warnings over the country’s war with Hamas.
McClelland also told the outlet that purchasing Israel Bonds could make the commonwealth a target for hackers.
“We’ve seen an increase in those attacks since October,” Garrity told the outlet. “We saw the Aliquippa Water Authority get hacked by Iran because they use an Israeli-made software system.”
McClelland nonetheless acknowledged to the outlet that it would be difficult for Pennsylvania to divest from its investments in Israel Bonds.
“Once you have them, you’re kind of stuck with them,” “unless you have a partner that wants to buy them and you’re probably going to sell them for a loss, and I couldn’t do that to taxpayers.”
Her stance differs from pro-Palestine protestors, who Philly Voice reported on May 14 gathered in Philadelphia to demand Pennsylvania fully divest from its $56 million investments in Israel Bonds.
Garrity defended the Israel Bond purchase, telling the Chronicle, “Israel is our greatest ally in the Middle East.”
She added, “When I talk with folks about this, I say, ‘Let me put it simply: If Hamas stopped fighting today, there would be no more war. If Israel stopped fighting, there would be no more Israel.”
The Pennsylvania Daily Star recently reported the political campaign of U.S. Senator John Fetterman (D-PA), one of the most high profile Democratic supporters of Israel, donated $1,000 to McClelland’s campaign.
When McClelland was asked about her relationship with Fetterman by Spotlight PA, she explained they became acquainted while campaigning in 2018.
“John has his beliefs. I have my beliefs,” the Democrat told the outlet, before adding, “I think we have far more in common than we have differences, but we do have differences.”
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Tom Pappert is the lead reporter for The Tennessee Star, and also reports for The Pennsylvania Daily Star and The Arizona Sun Times. Follow Tom on X/Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Erin McClelland” by Erin McClelland.
