Jewish Democrats have started to hit Sarah Palin hard for her association with former presidential candidate Pat Buchanan, which seems to have amounted to her being seen wearing a Buchanan button in 1996. Here's Rep. Robert Wexler of Florida:
John McCain's decision to select a vice presidential running mate that endorsed Pat Buchanan for president in 2000 is a direct affront to all Jewish Americans. Pat Buchanan is a Nazi sympathizer with a uniquely atrocious record on Israel, even going as far as to denounce bringing former Nazi soldiers to justice and praising Adolf Hitler for his "great courage."
At a time when standing up for Israel's right to self-defense has never been more critical, John McCain has failed his first test of leadership and judgment by selecting a running mate who has aligned herself with a leading anti-Israel voice in American politics. It is frightening that John McCain would select someone one heartbeat away from the presidency who supported a man who embodies vitriolic anti-Israel sentiments.
Wexler's case is based on a 1999 AP article, which described her as "sporting a Buchanan button" at a Buchanan visit to the town of which she was mayor.
She promptly responded to the story in a letter to the editor, saying that "the article may have left your readers with the perception that I am endorsing this candidate, as opposed to welcoming his visit to Wasilla. As mayor, I will welcome all the candidates in Wasilla."
[UPDATE: Buchanan himself said tonight on "Hardball" that Palin had been a supporter. Video to come.]
She didn't denounce him, as many members of the Jewish community did at the time for his doubts about America's commitment to Israel and Israel's role in American policy. But she didn't back him, either: She was an official of Steve Forbes' campaign that cycle, also according to the AP.
RNC communications director Danny Diaz shot back at Wexler: “Rep. Robert Wexler’s outrageous attack today on Gov. Sarah Palin is the worst kind of politics. Instead of engaging in a discussion on the issues, Wexler’s smears and accusations are detestable. If Barack Obama has any intention of engaging in a serious and honorable debate, he will immediately condemn these scare tactics.”
Obama's spokesman, Bill Burton, didn't respond to a request to comment on Wexler's attack.
The National Jewish Democratic Council issued a measured statement, saying her hard-line stance on abortion is to the right of most American Jews and questioning her support from the Christian Coalition. The Republican Jewish Coalition (also doing its job) defended her in a statement that makes no reference to Israel.
In reality, Palin's record on Israel, while friendly, is as thin as you'd expect from the first-term governor of Alaska.
RJC spokeswoman Suzanne Kurtz said, however, that based on conversations with Alaska Jews, she's confident Palin is a friend of Israel.
I spoke to two of Palin's Jewish allies in Alaska (of the roughly 6,000 Jews there), both of whom stressed that she'd signed a resolution supporting Israel and Alaska's ties to the Jewish state. (She's pictured above right at the signing.)
The resolution (after the jump) is supportive but unexceptional. Both of the Alaska Jews, rabbi Joseph Greenberg and businessman Terry Gorlick, said she was "conservative" on foreign affairs but that they'd never discussed the details of Israel policy with her.
Gorlick said she had never visited Israel, had promised to visit and recently postponed plans to work on Alaska pipeline issues.
"She's absolutely a friend of the Jewish community in Alaska," he said, adding that she had a "confirmed commitment" to visit Israel.
No word on her views of Michael Chabon's Yiddish Policeman's Union, in which there are more than 6,000 Jews in Alaska. And if any of the other 5,598 want to weigh in, I'd be curious.