Ethiopian-Born IDF Veteran & Democrat Vies for Long Island GOP Seat
Long Island Republicans are backing dual-citizen and staunch Zionist neocon Mazi Melesa Pilip in her run for New York's Third Congressional District.
Trust in the GOP has significantly decreased after the Trump administration. It exposed an agenda that is uncommon to our fellow citizens—an agenda based on ethnic imperialism utilizing misdirection.
After the ousting of disgraced former Rep. George Santos (R-NY), Republicans have nominated Nassau County Legislator Mazi Melesa Pilip for the state’s Third Congressional District. Oddly enough, Politico reported that when she entered the race, she had been registered as a Democrat since 2012.
Who is Mazi Melesa Pilip?
When Pilip was 12, she immigrated from Ethiopia to Israel under Operation Solomon, an Israeli military op airlifting of 14,000 Ethiopian Jews to Israel.
As an Orthodox Jew, she is president of her synagogue. Pilip dedicated her recent victory in the race for county legislator to Israel, showing questionable signs of dual loyalty. She told the Long Island Herald:
My message to Hamas is this: I promise you the Jewish people, the state of Israel, [and] the American people will make you pay the price you deserve!
Prior to her “Americanization,” Pilip served as a gunsmith in the Israeli Defense Force’s Paratrooper Brigade. She told Jewish Insider that she “was in charge of all the weapons.”
Republicans have nominated a former IDF soldier when the States are on the brink of further escalation in the Middle East. Pilip appears to be a neoconservative, as she also supports aid to Ukraine. That may be because her husband, Adalbert Pilip, is a Ukrainian Jew with a family ancestry of Holocaust survivors. This wouldn’t be the first time US officials acted out of familiar ethnic grievances.
Notably, Jewish identity and Israel are at the core of Pilip. She has been active in the predominantly Jewish community of Great Neck, encouraging residents to advocate for Zionism through various Jewish federations and nonprofits. Her homeland ties are tight as she has family—three sisters—living in Israel. As per her “reviving” of Great Neck, she has been so-called “bridging the connection with minorities as a black Jew.”
Along those ethnic and racial lines, the GOP chairman of Nassau County, Joseph Cairo, has been leading a concerted effort to “diversify” candidates on Long Island.
Pedram Bal, a Persian Jew serving as mayor of Great Neck, encouraged Cairo to prop up Pilip, according to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency. Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman, a Zionist Jew, is also backing Pilip.
Pilip, the supposed “ULTRA MAGA” Republican, expressed to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency that immigrants can indeed “integrate into the society.” She also added in a statement before the election:
Promoting understanding, education of cultures, religions and systemic hate has to be addressed for our young people on up.
Other Policy Stances
Besides promoting Zionism and diversity, Pilip is outspoken against antisemitism in the US, particularly aligning against free speech on college campuses.
Regarding her other positions, Pilip doesn’t support a national ban on abortion as it is “extreme.” She is said to be tough on crime and favors low taxes. Pilip sums up her intended policies in her “10 Point Plan.”
As far as her loyalty to the 45th president, she announced she would vote for the Republican nominee but has stated:
Trump has to go through his process … Nobody’s above the law.
False Imagery
The Congressional Leadership Fund, a GOP super PAC, bought a $1.5 million TV spot for Pilip, airing in New York City for two weeks. Republicans are attempting to make Pilip out as a force against Long Island’s immigration problems, yet, as mentioned before, she outwardly stated support for integrating immigrants in the framing of “diversity.”
The CLF ultimately spent a whopping $2.3 million propping up Pilip.
Scrutiny Over Financial Disclosure
The New York Times reported an “unusual disclosure” of assets by Pilip. The “little-known candidate” reported a sum between $1 million and $5.2 million. The report to the House Ethics Committee showed the omission of specifics regarding the assets.
After a nudge from The Times, Pilip amended her paperwork. Her campaign staff downplayed the omissions as a simple mistake for a team working under a crunch.
Brian Devine, a spokesman for Pilip, called it:
A preliminary draft that was inadvertently submitted prior to final review by Mazi’s financial team.
According to the outlet, ethics experts believe “the changes warranted further study.” Incorrectly filing these disclosure forms puts one at risk of prosecution. The Times was able to obtain further information from Pilip’s 2022 and 2023 financial disclosures, which also did not match her federal disclosure.
Her salary information was not provided for her work under her husband in marketing and administration. The Nassau County forms show further omitted investments from the congressional filing, found The Times.
She reported liabilities owed to the I.R.S. in the past two years, redacting on the House forms monies between $100,000 and $250,000 owed last year. Remember, though, reps are not required to report tax liabilities. The Times reported that public records don’t show tax liens for Pilip or her husband to match the liability.
Devine explained to The Times that the liability was “on a quarterly schedule for estimated tax payments” and that "Their earnings were beyond anticipated amounts, requiring them to make additional payments, which they have done.”
There hasn’t been much follow-up on this, but an inquiry is certainly reasonable after the antics of George Santos. It will most likely be ignored or downplayed as the New York GOP champions this Democrat running for a Republican seat.
Sour Conclusions
New York is now marked as a top target after Republicans ousted Santos. They gained control of the House of Representatives in the last election cycle, but that control may be up for grabs.
The Court of Appeals ruled that the House map must be redrawn, which Democrats will have the final say. New York Magazine stated that Pilip’s opponent, three-time district congressman and Roman Catholic “moderate” Democrat Tom Suozzi, “could face a relatively easy path to victory.”
However, it should be noted that in 2022, Suozzi ran an unsuccessful campaign for New York governor, losing to fellow Democrat Kathy Hochul. He still has fairly wide appeal in the existing NY-03 congressional district. But, Pilip has the support of the donor class.
When she ran for county legislator, her largest single donor was billionaire Ronald Lauder, the President of the World Jewish Congress. Lauder, of the renowned Estée Lauder Companies, has expected intentions as he has worked with various Jewish organizations, including the Anti-Defamation League.
Lauder has unquestionable influence through his past global affairs, connections in media and politics, as well as his $4.5 billion in assets reported by Forbes in 2022.
And with that, New York’s Third District could go to either candidate. Nonetheless, this Republican seat will go to a registered Democrat.