Rep. Jim Moran (D-Va.) this week blamed a pro-Israel lobbying group for blocking legislation earlier this year that would have prevented President Bush from starting a war with Iran without congressional approval.

Moran, whose political career has been jeopardized by his past attempts to criticize the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), tried to walk a careful line as he complained about the group.

“They are doing their job and they are straightforward about what they do. I have a disagreement with them on this issue. In recent times, they’ve become more partisan. Some of their policies are counterproductive. I disagree with them,” he said to applause from the anti-war crowd, numbering 400 strong. Another 400 listened in overflow rooms.

The event was a town hall meeting on Wednesday that Moran had called at the George Washington Masonic Memorial in Alexandria. The subject was tensions with Iran, and the meeting was titled “Is Iran Next?”

In his introduction, Moran mentioned Iran legislation introduced in March by Sen. Jim Webb (D-Va.) requiring congressional authorization before President Bush could take any military action against Iran. The language was included in an early version of the House’s fiscal 2007 Iraq supplemental spending bill, which President Bush vetoed in May. But the Iran language was stripped out after what Moran called “frenzied” lobbying.

“The fact it was as controversial as it was, was a concern to me,” Moran said.

Later, a member of the audience sent up a question on a card asking who did the frenzied lobbying. Moran mentioned Rep. Gary Ackerman (D-N.Y.) and then AIPAC.

“In all fairness, this organization makes clear what their objectives are. No one is making anyone vote one way or another. The fact that one group is influential is a credit to their work ethic. On that particular issue, I disagree. I know it’s been an issue,” he finished, drawing a chuckle from the audience.

AIPAC declined to comment. But Ackerman was happy to claim credit for helping to kill the Webb language, saying that taking military action off the table would have been a foolish strategy in dealing with Iran.

“With the exception of ‘frenzied,’ Congressman Moran is telling the truth on me,” Ackerman said. “I’m proud of my work on that bill.”

With regard to AIPAC, Ackerman said, “They never called me.” But he added, “I would be surprised if they didn’t take a position.”

Criticism of AIPAC and Israel has been more than just “an issue” for Moran. It was at a similar district forum in 2003 on Iraq that Moran said, “If it were not for the strong support of the Jewish community for this war with Iraq, we would not be doing this. The leaders of the Jewish community are influential enough that they could change the direction of where this is going, and I think they should.”

That comment cost him a leadership post, and brought the most serious challenge to his nine-term congressional career. A number of Northern Virginia Democrats publicly considered challenging Moran in the heavily Democratic district, and in 2004, former Capitol Hill staffer and lobbyist Andrew Rosenberg ran against him. He lost after fervent campaigning by Moran.

The issue reared its head again this fall, when Moran told Tikkun magazine that AIPAC “has pushed this war [in Iraq] from the beginning … They are so well organized, and their members are extraordinarily powerful — most of them are quite wealthy — they have been able to exert power.”

House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) called on Moran to retract those remarks, saying his comments raised an “old canard that is not true, that the Jewish community controls the media and the Congress.” House Deputy Minority Whip Eric Cantor (R-Va.) agreed with Hoyer that the comments reflect stereotypes of the Jewish community, and suggested they were “senseless and bigoted.”

A statement issued by Moran’s office said that the tone of his remarks in the magazine interview was “unnecessarily harsh,” but it did not apologize for or retract his comments: “He stands by his message — namely that for the last few years, AIPAC has not represented mainstream American Jewish opinion.”