Ben Smith reports today that Joe Sestak is distancing himself from the J Street sponsored, “infamous” (in the words of the Orthodox Union), anti-Israel letter accusing Israel of “collective punishment” for defending itself against Hamas terrorists bent on murdering Israelis. Collective punishment is specifically designated as a war crime by the Geneva Conventions, and the term’s use was rejected by all but 12 percent of the House, all Democrats now known as the Gaza 54. That number dropped to 53 when Yvette Clark distanced herself from the letter almost immediately after it was sent to President Obama. 

Sestak had been the target of an apparently effective ad campaign by the Emergency Committee for Israel, chaired by my very own boss, Bill Kristol. Sestak’s decision to distance himself from the letter marks a major reversal from his earlier posture, as reported by Philadelphia’s Jewish Exponent back in February of this year: