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Monday, July 30, 2012

American Jews are not batshit crazy
Posted by Jill | 6:50 AM
As a card-carrying, if nonreligious, Member of the Tribe, I'm appalled by the spectacle of Willard Rmoney claiming the right to declare American policy towards Israel while on a money-grubbing trip overseas. The worst fears of those who believe that U.S. foreign policy is dictated by Israel were realized this weekend when Rmoney, doing the bidding not just of Bibi Netanyahu, but of Sheldon Adelson, the billionaire who has vowed to do whatever it takes to put his Mormon BFF in the White House, announced that not only would he move the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem, but that he'd be perfectly happy to look the other way while Israel unilaterally attacks Iran. NYT:
The speech, delivered at dusk overlooking the Old City, was short on policy prescriptions, as Mr. Romney tried to adhere to an unwritten code suggesting that candidates not criticize each other on foreign soil. But there were subtle differences between what he said — and how he said it — and the positions of his opponent.

While the Obama administration typically talks about stopping Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon, Mr. Romney adopted the language of Israel’s leaders, who say Tehran must be prevented from even having the capability to develop one.

And while President Obama and his aides always acknowledge Israel’s right to defend itself, they put an emphasis on sanctions and diplomacy; Dan Senor, Mr. Romney’s senior foreign policy aide, went further on Sunday, suggesting that Mr. Romney was ready to support a unilateral military strike by Israel.

“If Israel has to take action on its own,” Mr. Senor said in a briefing before the speech, “the governor would respect that decision.”


One of the things that makes me nuts about my people is that we are a highly intelligent bunch, but when it comes to Israel, we tend to lose our intelletive capacity and respond with the same reptilian brain that the right uses towards just about everything. I may think Israel is necessary because when push comes to shove, and things get bad enough, someone with power is going to stand up and blame the Jews. When criticism of Israel goes beyond people like Netanyahu and starts becoming a critique of the entire nation, my gut twists up. It's not an intellective response, but a visceral one. At least I recognize that.

So, despite all of Willard's appalling and inflammatory rhetoric, do most American Jews, who are still solidly behind Barack Obama. Gallup (no liberals they):
While Republicans may look favorably on Romney's visit to Israel, another group with keen interest in U.S.-Israeli relations -- Jewish Americans -- solidly backs Obama in the election.

Gallup Daily tracking from June 1-July 26 finds Jewish registered voters favoring Obama over Romney by 68% to 25%. That is essentially the same as Gallup's prior update on Jewish voting preferences.

Although one goal of Romney's Israel visit could be to attract greater support among Jewish voters in the U.S., Jewish Americans have been a traditionally strong Democratic group, so they are unlikely to become much more supportive of Romney regardless of the outcome of the trip.


I'm sure that Rmoney's rhetoric will play well on the West Bank and among American Evangelicals, who can't wait to sit on the couch and share a Coors and a plate of loaded nachos with Jesus while Jews who don't convert are tormented on Judgment Day. But last I looked, they were not voting in the U.S. election. Fortunately, most American Jews are like me and are capable of stringing two coherent thoughts together.

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2 Comments:
Anonymous The WP said...
Romoney is part of the RAPTURE IS US club. When he talks about guns and American needing a "change of heart," he's really talking about a change of religion. Those batshit nutballs _need_ Israel to fulfill their cockamamie prophecies.

Don't kid yourself EVER. They. Are. Not. Our. Friends. Period.
7/30/12, 2:01 PM  
Anonymous Fred Drumlevitch said...
Your last paragraph gets to the heart of the reason why Romney is spouting his latest inflammatory rhetoric --- but I think your conclusion about American Evangelicals not voting is way off. As they say, "It ain't over till the fat lady sings", and I wouldn't jump to any conclusions about who will vote this November until the votes have been counted and analyses done. Romney's latest, beyond grubbing for Sheldon Adelson's money, is, in fact, an obvious attempt to get that American Evangelical vote.
7/30/12, 8:27 PM  
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