Free Republic

WASHINGTON – Few people are entirely neutral in their assessment of the work and influence of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee. Whether revered, feared or reviled, AIPAC is seen by some as an icon of pro-Israel advocacy – or the bogeyman symbolizing everything that's wrong with America's political lobbying and fundraising scene. But no matter how it's characterized, AIPAC's political evolution over the past three years has been one of the defining stories of U.S. politics.

While Bill Cosby may have walked out of prison a free man yesterday, the courts saw to it that he endured two criminal trials and spent years in prison during his appeals.On June 30, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court tossed the criminal sexual assault conviction against Bill Cosby, concluding that the 2005 decision by District Attorney Bruce Castor not to prosecute Cosby for the alleged sexual assault of Andrea Constand barred Pennsylvania from later charging Cosby with that crime. Given the avalanche of allegations that the former actor and comedian drugged and then sexually assaulted scores of young women, Wednesday’s decision...