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Title: Obama: America's First Jewish President
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URL Source: http://www.nysun.com/blogs/latest-p ... ama-americas-first-jewish.html
Published: Jun 8, 2008
Author: Josh Gerstein
Post Date: 2008-06-08 15:49:50 by Jethro Tull
Keywords: None
Views: 339
Comments: 19
by Josh Gerstein Bill Clinton was America's first black president. Or so we thought. Until recently, John Edwards was running to be America's first woman president. Now, shocking word that Barack Obama may be in line to be America's first Jewish president. Discussing his affinity for Israel, Senator Obama tells the Atlantic magazine, "I've got it in the gut." He describes his own thought process as agonized (dare we say neurotic?) in a way that some might view as quintessentially Jewish. And he professes an "enormous emotional attachment and sympathy for Israel" that would make an Aipac board member jealous. "Sometimes I'm attacked in the press for maybe being too deliberative. My staff teases me sometimes about anguishing over moral questions. I think I learned that partly from Jewish thought, that your actions have consequences and that they matter and that we have moral imperatives. The point is, if you look at my writings and my history, my commitment to Israel and the Jewish people is more than skin-deep and it's more than political expediency. When it comes to the gut issue, I have such ardent defenders among my Jewish friends in Chicago. I don't think people have noticed how fiercely they defend me, and how central they are to my success, because they've interacted with me long enough to know that I've got it in my gut," Mr. Obama told the magazine. The senator from Illinois and likely Democratic presidential nominee also traced his ties to Jewish writers, thinkers--and even camp counselors. "I always joke that my intellectual formation was through Jewish scholars and writers, even though I didn't know it at the time. Whether it was theologians or Philip Roth who helped shape my sensibility, or some of the more popular writers like Leon Uris. So when I became more politically conscious, my starting point when I think about the Middle East is this enormous emotional attachment and sympathy for Israel, mindful of its history, mindful of the hardship and pain and suffering that the Jewish people have undergone, but also mindful of the incredible opportunity that is presented when people finally return to a land and are able to try to excavate their best traditions and their best selves. And obviously it's something that has great resonance with the African-American experience," the senator said. So, even if Americans are ready for their first black president, are they ready for their first Jewish one? For what it's worth, back in January, a Huffington Post contributor posited this play by Mr. Obama. And even earlier, Mayor Giuliani seemed to be seeking the mantle of the breakthrough Jewish candidate.
Poster Comment: The man knows who butters his bagel.
Obama: America's First Jewish President
Mon, 12 May 2008 at 9:21 PM 
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Begin Trace Mode for Comment # 19.
#2. To: Jethro Tull (#0)
(Edited)
is there any doubt whatsoever who owns obama? i'd really like to know from whom his campaign $$ have really come. surely, we cannot believe that the majority of it hasn't come from the lobby. millions from grassroots individual donors? i think not. now, about that foreign policy "change that we can believe in." ;)
Did you know that the information was readily avialable? It's HERE. It's better to take a look and find the smoking guns before writing 'is there any doubt whatsoever...?' Of course there are doubts and there should be doubts about everything but, sometimes, making use of available information helps. By the way, I don't buy the idea that contributors 'own' a politician. There was recently a discussion on this forum having to do with the Stormfronters contribution to Barr being rejected. We were in general agreement that citizens have the freedom to support whomever they want and there was a positive quote from Ron Paul, stating that when people give him money, it's them picking him, not he picking them. It is my impression that a small but cohesive group of screamers have managed to degrade the quality of the debate on this forum - see the post immediately following yours for a good illustration - and some more intelligent contributors are letting them get away with it, because it is convenient to do so since their inarticulate screaming appears be in agreement with their views. I am sorry to see this happening.
what i meant by my comment is that it is my belief that obama is owned by AIPAC and the IsraelFirsters just as is every other establishment politician. see Justin Raimondo's latest denouncement of obama for the same reason. obama's own words, cited in this article, confirms it, in my mind.
Obama can't defeat AIPAC all by himself, especially not while he is a candidate. There is some evidence that the radical Zionists and the Neocons find Obama to be the least desirable candidate for US prez. Can he openly tell the AIPACs to stay away from him? Of course not. He IS a Demo and he does wish to be elected - remember what they did to Buchanan. If Obama is elected I do not expect to see the American Jews herded into concentration camps or for the US aid to Israel being cut down to zero - but he could surprise us all. I also do not expect Obama to send our boys and girls to die when Israel or AIPAC says so.
we'll (justin and i) will have to agree to disagree with you. ;) I have to say I was wrong – dead wrong – about Obama. In my eagerness to find a bright spot in a rapidly darkening world, I grasped on to his alluring rhetoric and his at-times trenchant critique of the Bush foreign policy, like a sinking man holding on to a life-jacket. But looking for hope in all the wrong places doesn't create opportunities for peace – it only prolongs our illusions. We must face the prospect of a much more terrible conflict than we have ever known, and look it squarely in the face, without flinching or looking for false messiahs. I know many of you are disappointed, and some of you are now exclaiming "I told you so!" All that we can do now is hope, and pray, that our country – and the Iranian people – will somehow survive the coming catastrophe. Justin Raimondo
You are wrong, vast, regarding your optimistic view of Obama's foreign policy being a "change" from Bush's, or different from McCain's and Hillary's: From the good Rabbi Kurt Stone, an Obama fan and professor: "The Obama Minyan" Some cut and paste: So just who is advising Senator Obama on Israel and the Middle East? Who makes up "The Obama Minyan?" [n.b. A "minyan" is a lawful quorum of ten Jewish adults -- some athorities say only men -- required for reciting Jewish prayers.] A bit of research available to anyone who wants to know the truth, turns up the following "minyanaires:" Rep. Robert Wexler: Rob, who I am proud to say is my representative in Congress, is a devoutly religious, Miami-bred member of the House Foreign Affairs subcommittee on the Middle East and South Asia. As early as 2002 he was calling for the ouster of terrorist leaders in the Mideast and declared that Israel was engaged in full-scale war. When it comes to supporting the Jewish State, no one takes a backseat to Congressman Wexler. Former Rep. Mel Levine: Mel, a good friend of longstanding [who ironically, was my representative when I was still living in Southern California], was a member of the House from 1982-1992. Mel comes from a family whose allegiance to Israel is legendary: in 1948, his late father Sid was Western States' representative for the Haganah. Indeed, one of Mel's earliest memories, as he recounted for my book, The Congressional Minyan: The Jews of Capitol Hill was: ". . . as a five-year old hearing the doorbell ring . . . and being knocked over by a gunny sack filled with God knows what. . . and my dad grabbing me and basically throwing me away from the door. I learned many years later that that was some type of materiel that was on its way to Israel during the War of Independence." During his years in the House, Mel's was one of the most intelligent and passionate voices ever raised on Israel's behalf. Bar none. Ambassador Dan Kurtzer: Dan was President Clinton's Ambassador to Egypt from 1997-2001, and President George W. Bush's Ambassador to Israel from 2001-2005. Prior to entering foreign service, he was dean of his alma mater, Yeshiva University. Now retired, Dan is the first-ever commissioner of the Israel Baseball League. [Which, by the way, drafted Sandy Koufax!] Former U.S. Senator Tom Daschle: Yes, I know, Tom is a Catholic, so technically, cannot be counted in a "minyan." Nonetheless, during all his years in the House and Senate [where he was Minority Leader], Tom was among Israel's strongest and most consistent supporters. Despite coming from a state [South Dakota] that is home to precisely 99 Jews, Tom is well-known for his efforts on behalf of the Jewish State. I first met him back in 1986, when he came to South Florida to get acquainted with the Jewish community. Following a luncheon speech at the Woodlands Country Club, one of the Zionist lions asked him "what was the family name before Daschle? Are you sure you're not Jewish?" Rep. Jan Schakowsky: Jan has represented a Chicago-area district [9] in the House since 1998. One simply cannot be elected and reelected by such wide margins [75% in 2006, 76% in 2004] from Evanston/Skokie unless they are actively, stridently, vociferously pro-Israel. And this Jan is. Penny Pritzker: Scion of the Hyatt Hotel chain and herself the founder/Chair/CEO of "Classic Residency by Hyatt," Penny is one of the wealthiest women in the world. Holder of a Harvard degree in economics, and a graduate of the Stanford University Law School, Penny is part of a famiy that has been among Israel's strongest financial backers for more than two generations. Penny is the Obama campaign's national finance director; as such the senator has come under intense fire from anti-Zionist groups who claim that he is "in the pocket of the Zionists." How can one be anti-Israel and at the same time get slammed by the true haters of Israel for being "overly Zionist?" Beats me. Anthony Lake: The grandson of a Church of England clergyman who came the United States from Oxford to teach New Testament Studies at Harvard, Tony Lake converted to Judaism in 2005. He has long been a foreign policy advisor to Democrats. When questioned by Moment Magazine about his support for Barack Obama vis-a-vis Israel, Lake responded: "The question is: Which America is the strongest friend of Israel? Which America will be the strongest adversary to those who would do us harm? And clearly, the answer is an America that is unified rather than torn apart by the politics of the past 20 years. And it is in Obama's DNA to be a unifier while having clear views." Denis McDonough: Senior Fellow at American Progress and former Legislative Director for Colorado Senator Ken Salazar, Denis is currently the Obama Campaign's Foreign Policy Coordinator. He is an acknowledged expert on Israeli- Arab relations; an area of expertise that has been sorely lacking for the past eight years. Denis is a stalwart supporter of Israel, and despite the fact that he is not "MOT" ["A Member of the Tribe"] he is without question a member- in-good-standing of the Obama Minyan. Dan Shapiro: Former Foreign Policy Adviser to Florida Senator Bill Nelson. Dan was responsible for writing the "Syria Accountability Act of 2003," which was intended among other things, to "halt Syrian terrorism and its occupation of Lebanon . . . and to hold Syria accountable for its role in the Middle East." This measure was co-sponsored by California Senator Barbara Boxer and Former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum. That bill became law in December 2003. Dan also drafted a 2007 measure that prohibits US contacts with Palestinian leadership. He was brought on board largely on the strength of his close relations with AIPAC. Lee Rosenberg: A Chicago-based independent venture capitalist, Lee is both a member of the Obama Campaign finance team, and, perhaps most importantly, the Treasurer of AIPAC. For anyone who watched the senator's address before AIPAC the other day, that was Lee who did the introduction. And these, my friends are the front-line members of the Obama Minyan.
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There are no replies to Comment # 19. End Trace Mode for Comment # 19.
Top • Page Up • Full Thread • Page Down • Bottom/Latest"I've got it in the gut." He describes his own thought process as agonized (dare we say neurotic?) in a way that some might view as quintessentially Jewish. And he professes an "enormous emotional attachment and sympathy for Israel" that would make an Aipac board member jealous.
#4. To: christine (#2)
(Edited)
is there any doubt whatsoever who owns obama? i'd really like to know from whom his campaign $$ have really come. surely, we cannot believe that
#5. To: a vast rightwing conspirator (#4)
(Edited)
#6. To: christine (#5)
#8. To: a vast rightwing conspirator (#6)
I also do not expect Obama to send our boys and girls to die when Israel or AIPAC says so.
#17. To: a vast rightwing conspirator, christine, Jethro Tull, angle, buckeye (#8)
I also do not expect Obama to send our boys and girls to die when Israel or AIPAC says so.
#19. To: scrapper2, *Obama Reality Check* (#17)
Replies to Comment # 19.