Running while (not) Muslim (or Jewish)

Posted By Drew Kumpf Tuesday, February 26, 2008 - 4:45 PM Share

A number of Jewish and pro-Israel voters have raised questions about Barack Obama during the 2008 campaign. In case you haven't followed this ongoing issue, here's a brief summary of the complaints:

  1. Obama hasn't distanced himself strongly enough from Reverend Jeremiah A. Wright Jr. of his home congregation in Chicago, whose church's magazine gave an award to the notorious Louis Farrakhan.
  2. Obama has called for engaging Iran. Daniel Ayalon, Israel's former ambassador to the United States, told the New York Sun he is concerned Obama would want to negotiate with a "Hitler-like" regime.
  3. Some of Obama's policy advisors of various stripes, such as Samantha Power, Robert Malley, and Zbigniew Brzezinski, have come under attack for their views on Israel. World Jewish Congress President Ronald Lauder fears, "[I]t's only a matter of time before the president becomes anti-Israel." 

It's not clear how widespread these sentiments are. Obama does have other advisors, such as Daniel Shapiro, that are quelling voters' angst. And Howard Friedman, the president of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, said the leading presidential candidates are all interested in continuing close ties with Israel. But yesterday's online frenzy about a picture of Obama in traditional Somali garb brought these questions back to the fore -- with the ugly subtext being that Obama is a closet Muslim.

In an odd parallel, rumors are circulating in Russia that Dmitry Medvedev, Vladimir Putin's designated successor, may be Jewish -- a damaging charge in a country with a long history of anti-Semitism. Nikolai Bondarik, head of the nationalist Russian Party, is happy to take advantage:

It's common knowledge. Medvedev never hid his sympathy towards Judaism… A president ought to be related by blood with his people. Imagine if Japan was run by a Chinese president."

EXPLORE:DECISION '08, ELECTIONS, ISRAEL/PALESTINE, POLITICS, RELIGION, RUSSIA, U.S. FOREIGN POLICY
 

KIDZIB

6:21 PM ET

February 26, 2008

Zionists Gone Wild

It amazes me that Zionists have the chutzpah to accuse Jimmy Carter and his former staffers of anti-Semitism! JIMMY CARTER! The man has done more for Israel than all other American presidents combined! He oozes peace and reason. Nelson Mandela and Desmond Tutu have both called Israel an apartheid state - and I think they would know what one looks like! The truth is that Israel has an awful human rights record and is doing some truly nasty things. It's better to acknowledge that and do something about it rather than sweep it under the rug!

As far as Iran having a Hitler-like regime, what a joke! Ahmadinejad has a fat mouth, but he's no Nazi. Check out http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2006/jun/27/iran.ewenmacaskill or http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/5367892.stm to learn more about Iran's 25,000 Jews who live normal lives and have parliamentary representation. No Jews are being killed in the streets of Iran or sent off to concentration camps. Talking to Iran isn't exactly like signing the Munich Appeasement!

It's time to get real about the state of the Middle East! Israel has the least favorable image in the entire world (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/6421597.stm). To continue to support it without question will only further erode America's image abroad. It's in the interest of both the United States and Israel to seriously reconsider their policies in the Holy Land. That means actually following through with promises to freeze settlements and to stop treating East Jerusalem like it's off limits for negotiations.

If that's too outrageous for you, then please vote for McCain. G-d knows he doesn't give a damn about the Palestinians...

 

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