How threatening is Brooklyn Assemblyman Dov Hikind's warning that Jewish voters would make "a mass movement toward Sen. McCain" if Barack Obama is seen to clinch the nomination in tomorrow's big primaries? Hikind, whom today's New York Post describes as "an Orthodox Jew whose Borough Park district includes the largest Hasidic bloc in the United States," lends a clear voice to what have till now been more quietly murmured misgivings about Obama in the religious--as opposed to the cultural--Jewish community.
And God-o-Meter has certainly been taken by the force that Hillary Clinton has applied in trying to exploit those misgivings. Last week, it was Clinton calling for Obama to reject Louis Farrakhan's near-endorsement. Yesterday, it was Clinton releasing this I'm-more-pro-Israel-than-Bush statement on the recent volley of attacks between Israel and Gaza:
I deplore and condemn the Hamas rocket attacks on southern Israel, including the city of Ashkelon. Israel has the right to defend its citizens....I call on Hamas to stop this irresponsible aggression immediately, which would enable Israeli and Palestinian civilians to return to normal life.
The rockets fired from Gaza by Hamas and Islamic Jihad terrorists are aimed not only at the people of southern Israel; they are aimed at the heart of Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations. I regret the Palestinian Authority’s decision to suspend the talks.
The Bush Administration should have been taking a much more active role in bringing international pressure on Hamas to stop its attacks.
Brooklyn's Hikind, a Democrat who backed Ronald Reagan in 1980 and 1984, says Jews are put off by Obama's Israel stance and his longtime pastor:
Hikind... blasted Obama for what he called his half-hearted support of Israel and his ties to the Rev. Jeremiah Wright Jr., who has repeatedly praised anti-Semitic Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan, who has endorsed Obama.Hikind... said Obama had not satisfactorily distanced himself from Wright, his Chicago-based personal pastor, noting, "This is a man who thinks Farrakhan is a great guy and God's gift to the world."
Hikind went on, "Obama has said that you can be a supporter of Israel even if you're for giving up land to the Arabs, which is true - but for a guy running for president to take a position like this in advance of getting into office, combined with everything else going on in the Middle East, that scares the hell out of me."
"There are a hell of a lot of Jews who are concerned about these issues, and they go way beyond Hasidic and Orthodox Jews..."
Since The New York Post doesn't, God-o-Meter must note that Obama has made strenuous efforts to assuage Jewish concerns, including meeting with Jewish activists and enlisting surrogates to make his case in the Jewish press. Plus, Obama won the Jewish vote in primaries in California, Connecticut, and Massachusetts, undercutting the case for a "mass movement toward Sen. McCain." Still, Hikind's beef with Obama is certain proof that, should the Illinois senator effectively seal up the nomination tomorrow, he'll have to work hard to get what has been traditionally lopsided support from bedrock Democratic constituency.
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You can bet Obama is spending some time learning Hebrew. This guy morphs into whatever targeted group he needs to. If he can have the audacity to want Evangelicals to vote for his altered view of scripture, he'll have no problem looking pro-Israel to garner the Jewish vote for the time being.
I was shocked--nonplussed for a moment on hearing news that there are Jews actually prepared to vote for Barack Obama! ("Baruch Atah Obama"?) What prevails in the voting mindset of these individuals escapes me.
Is it intellectual high-mindedness? Is it the very name "McCain" that falls heavy on the Jewish ear? A liberal Jewish friend of mine here in New York told me he’s voting for Obama. Okay. But how does that square with your abiding concerns for Israel these many years? I asked him. “Yeah, well,” his voice trails off. Then suddenly, “. . . but this guy McCain: he’s old, befuddled,” he bemoans; "Obama’s at least young and fresh,” these last words bouncing out in an upbeat lilt. Then, in sotto voce, he adds, “and, come on, you and I know that black people have suffered here . . .”
Time was, Israel's right to exist in peace was a vital political litmus test for the Jewish community. For me, John McCain, his shortcomings notwithstanding, appears to pass that test. In a word, he’s the more likely CIC who will field our military, should the cat jump in the Middle East. And jump it will, sooner than later.
This is not the stuff of Hollywood. We’re at a very deadly crossroad. You have only to watch and listen to Iran's President, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Ruling over a country that is just about to go nuclear, Ahmadinejad effectively demonstrates what Hitler said before launching all-out war in Europe. Speaking in third-person German, with the sinister smile we frequently see on the bearded Ahmadinejad, The Fuehrer tells the thousands of Nazis at his rally about how Europe is wondering whether he, "Herr Hitler," will make war. "Er kommt," he tells them, nodding his head and shaking his index finger. "Er kommt." ["He is coming."]
Rest assured an Obama or Clinton presidency, with a Chamberlain predisposition, will further embolden our enemies the world over. To the Israelis, I’d say: Arm and gird yourselves for the fight of your lives like no other. You have no real friend sitting in the Oval Office. And to all America Jews who would help put Obama or Clinton in the Oval Office, a needed, straightforward reality check. Watch Claude Lanzmann's "Shoa." Starting today.
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