A War for the Jewish Vote in America – Oy Vey!

by DARLENE CASELLA August 29, 2012

Jewish Democrats are sounding trumpets and banging tin drums because the GOP scheduled a short tribute video to retiring Texas Congressman Ron Paul at the Tampa Convention.   They claim that Republicans are anti Israel, and this proves it!

Jeffrey Helmreich of the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs writes that the Jewish vote in America is a swayable bloc.  Support for Israel has proven capable of spurring a portion of Jews to switch parties in large numbers.  The Israel swing vote is one that Republican and Democrat parties are seeking to persuade. 

David Harris, president of the National Jewish Democrat Council, drags out Paul's financial newsletters from the 1980's as evidence of his anti Semitic bent.  Paul rebuts that he was not directly involved in these newsletters, and that he is not anti Semitic.

Israel news media Haaretz interviewed Paul.   He said "Any racism or anti Semitism is incompatible with my philosophy.  Ludwig von Mises the great economist, whose writing helped inspire my political career, was a Jew who was forced to leave his native Austria to escape the Nazis.  Mises wrote about the folly of seeing people as part of groups rather than as individuals."     In other interviews Paul has said "My message has always been based on the rights of all people to be treated equally.  Any type of racism is incompatible with my philosophy."

Democrats hammer that Paul opposes US foreign aid to the State of Israel.  Paul has been consistent.  "I am against all foreign aid.  We give $3 billion to Israel and $12 billion to her avowed enemies.  How does that help Israel? I believe that federal foreign aid is absurd.  We are broke."  Democrat demagogues should know that Paul believes in cutting off aid to all nations, including enemies of Israel.   Agree or disagree with Paul's foreign policy.  It is not anti Semitic or anti Israel.   He has promised to defend Israel if she is attacked by Iran. 

Harris has called upon Presidential Candidate Mitt Romney to cancel the video.   Harris comments include "It is disturbing that Republicans would honor an anti-Israel Representative, but not the least bit surprising.  It is a national disgrace."

Others believe it is a national disgrace that former President Jimmy Carter will speak to the Democrat National Convention in Charlotte North Carolina.  His book Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid claims that Israel's control and colonization of Palestinian land is an obstacle to peace in the Middle East.   He said that Israel's West Bank policies are apartheid.  Carter's video presentation at the DNC has been criticized by the American Defamation League and by the Zionist Organization of America. 

With regard to Israel, President Barak Obama made the 1967 borders the precondition for the beginning of negotiations.  Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said these borders are indefensible.  The New York Times reported that this made it more difficult for the peace process to move forward, and as a result we have no peace process. 

David Harris is using the Ron Paul video at the GOP Convention as proof of a Republican anti Semitic leaning.  On November 6, we will see if Jewish voters agreed with him.