Campaign reps at the United Jewish Communities debate

[underpants]

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/03/17/AR2008031702440.html?hpid=topnews&sid=ST2008031702549

A group of Jewish leaders announced that it was having a public meeting yesterday to discuss the 2008 presidential election. Representing John McCain: former secretary of state Lawrence Eagleburger. Representing Hillary Clinton: former White House official Ann Lewis. Representing Barack Obama: "a high-level representative of Barack Obama's presidential campaign (TBA)

TBA? Obama's Jewish problem must be getting worse.

Finally, TBA was ID'd: Princeton professor Dan Kurtzer, a former ambassador to Israel. And when the victim, er, high-level representative, took the stage at the Washington Hilton yesterday for the United Jewish Communities debate, he went quickly on defense.

"There's a question in the community that's unfortunately been stimulated and stirred about and played with in e-mails and innuendos and newspaper articles," he said, "that suggests that there's something wrong with Senator Obama's views about Jews, about Israel." He then suggested that Jews could relate to Obama's persecution. "There are nagging doubts, there are e-mails, there are innuendos: These are the kinds of things which we as a community have suffered over the years at the hands of anti-Semites."

Jews, a small but influential group in Democratic politics, had been worried about Obama even before last week's preacher problem. It seems recent divisions between African Americans and Jews were aggravated by matters such as Obama's sympathy for the Palestinians, and his willingness to take advice from Zbigniew Brzezinski, the former Carter administration official who calls U.S. Middle East policy "morally hypocritical."

Kurtzer, granted his turn to speak, attempted to argue that "on issues relating to Israel, frankly, there aren't any differences among the three candidates." Eagleburger looked at him incredulously; the audience laughed.

The others used their time to raise doubts about Obama's fealty to Israel. "Senator Obama has said that he commits in his first year as president to meeting with President Ahmadinejad of Iran," Lewis said. McCain, Eagleburger added, "will not talk with the Syrians, will not talk with the Iranians, will not talk with Hamas and Hezbollah. . . . He isn't going to push the Israelis."

Next question to Kurtzer: Obama's assertion that he needn't have a "Likud view" -- that of Israel's right-wing party -- to be pro-Israel. Kurtzer explained that Obama wanted to see a "plurality of views." Silence in the room.

To that, Lewis retorted: "The role of the president of the United States is to support the decisions that are made by the people of Israel. It is not up to us to pick and choose from among the political parties." The audience members applauded.

[DGoldman1212]

1. Let me just say

that as a Jewish American, the role of the president of the United States is NOT to blindly support the decisions made by the people of Israel or any other nation on earth for that matter. That's absolute insanity. That the room was silent when it was mentioned that Obama wanted to see a plurality of views is shameful.

[Crunchy Frog]

2. "The role of the president of the United States is to support the decisions that are made

by the people of Israel. It is not up to us to pick and choose from among the political parties."

Wow. Just wow.

Do these people ever worry about a possible backlash occuring sometime in the future?

[olkaz]

3. this is what really pisses me off with this crowd.

Israel is a great friend, and deserves our support. I would never think of turning my back on them.

But this utter ridiculousness has got to stop. If you're a US citizen, the US should come first. The very thought that we should be taking our cues from Israel makes me furious.

These guys are nuts.