Arab and Muslim Americans face a critical moment on Nov. 5. If Joe Biden wins the US presidential election, they lose. Donald Trump might not be a great alternative, but he may be their only choice.

Pro-Israel political action committees pour millions of dollars into the campaign funds of both Republican and Democratic candidates and officials — a system where money means more than ethics.

Israel’s lobbying is unrivaled in its ability to influence and inform Congress, while efforts by the Arab world and the Arab American community do not even come close to having the same impact. There are no comparable pro-Arab PACs, so the pro-Israel lobby has the political football field all to itself.

Another major factor is that most Israelis understand American culture and society far better than most Arabs or Muslims. As a consequence, they better understand the nuances of American politics, fueling Israel’s political successes.

For Arab and Muslim Americans, this creates a quagmire in the country’s two-party system that is difficult to navigate. When it comes to America’s Middle East policies, especially on Palestine, there is no substantive difference between Republicans and Democrats, or even most major third-party candidates.

That is ironic considering that Arabs and Muslims share many of the same conservative values as the Republican Party,........

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