Posted on 06/05/2008 7:21:06 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
Norman Kaplan brought a printout of an e-mail with him to the ROMEOs luncheon last Friday at the Tallgrass Creek retirement community’s Blue Sky restaurant. The headline was “Michelle Obama’s Militant Racism Revealed,” and it highlighted allegedly objectionable passages from the would-be First Lady’s 1985 college senior thesis at Princeton.
ROMEOs stands for Retired Old Men’s Eating Organization, and they are a predominantly Jewish bunch. But, like many professional pundits these days, Kaplan doesn’t think Sen. Barack Obama will get the traditional 75 or 80 percent of the American Jewish vote if he does, indeed, become the Democratic presidential nominee.
“I don’t think so,” Kaplan said. “There are a lot of reasons. That’s why I brought this article. Even though we have presidents, the wives have a lot to do with it. The Reverend (Jeremiah Wright) has a lot to do with it.
“And second, there is something about (Obama) I just don’t like. I don’t know how or why. … He doesn’t have enough experience to be president. … He’s not the right man right now. It’s not because he’s black.”
Kaplan, who said he generally votes Democratic, has “no idea” who he’d vote for if the major-party choices in November are Obama and Sen. John McCain.
Opinion among the ROMEOs was hardly unanimous on this issue.
“I’m going to vote for (Obama),” said Bob Kleban. Kleban said he thinks Obama would get the traditional 3- or 4-to-1 support from American Jews.
“There is a lot of stuff if you want to believe every e-mail. I don’t put too much stock in it,” he said.
Paul Russell agreed, “because McCain is not an option for most Jews.”
Russell knows that some question Obama’s commitment to Israel but says, “We won’t know until he’s president. I believe he will be as staunch a supporter as his predecessors.”
Lingering concerns
On the other hand, it wasn’t hard to find nay-sayers among the 70 or so ROMEOs at last week’s luncheon.
Herb Fishman, who spends half the year in Florida, says, “I get people saying they will vote for McCain versus Obama. They don’t know Obama. The truth comes when they get in that voting booth and pull the curtain. Then it’s a gut reaction that tells you who to vote for, and Jews have doubts about Obama.”
Jack Bohm, who’s backing Sen. Hillary Clinton, thinks Obama would get a clear majority of the Jewish vote but not the traditional whopping margin.
“I don’t know how he begins to separate fact from fiction, with the Internet stuff about his supposed ties to Islam,” said Andy Hilvitz. “Jews aren’t immune to this stuff. He’s got a job cut out for himself.”
Marty Fox, who traditionally votes Republican, thinks Obama would get a historically low percentage of the Jewish vote — 50 percent.
“Fifty percent will go to the Republicans,” Fox said. “Jews would feel safer under McCain, and Israel would be protected, based on what McCain has said. … Obama has never said anything, except that he’ll talk to our enemies.”
At last Thursday’s annual fundraising dinner sponsored by the local chapter of the scrupulously non-partisan American Israel Public Affairs Committee, chapter president Dr. Larry Nussbaum considered the question of Obama and the Jewish vote.
“I think Jews will continue to be majority Democratic,” Dr. Nussbaum said, “but not 80-20; maybe 60-40. People are concerned about Obama’s foreign policy regarding Israel, even though his statements are good.”
Allan Abrams, a local member of the board of directors of Brit Tzedek v’Shalom, the Jewish Alliance for Justice and Peace, has been an Obama supporter from early on, and he hopes his fellow Jews will give Obama their traditional vote margin.
“I think he will get very close to that … because people who have been paying attention to the news can’t help but see what he has done before and with Jewish groups,” Abrams said. “His statements have been quite supportive of Jews in general and of Israel. He has acquitted himself very well of any charges of anti-Semitism or anti-Israel. … I don’t think the great majority of educated, informed people believe that.”
Still, one Obama supporter among the ROMEOs hinted at the reticence the candidate will have to overcome if he is to fully tap the Jewish vote, Jewish campaign contributions and Jewish political influence.
“I don’t like his middle name,” said Harold Prince. “His name is Hussein, and we had a war to get rid of a guy named Hussein.”
Even so, Prince said, “I would vote for him over McCain.”
He will get the Jewish vote. The yellow dog factor is decisive.
This first time Jewish voter will not vote for Hussein.
They’re fools if they do vote for him.
Many of the Jews don’t get it about right and wrong just like they didn’t when Jesus first came and they have been cursed to suffer since.
Amazing how a people who are (as a whole) so intelligent, can be so dumb when it comes to American politics.
Thou sayist it.
Ping!
“He has acquitted himself very well of any charges of anti-Semitism or anti-Israel. … I don’t think the great majority of educated, informed people believe that.”
Only in your deluded dreams Brit.
I am atill waiting for someone to take him to task on his AIPAC speech....didn’t he say the Iraq war made Israel and America less safe???
did this guy know the former leader of Iraq, his namesake, handed nice sums of cash to suicide bombers who blew themselves up in pizzaria’s, bus stations, etc???
NO!
It sounds as if he may receive a bit less than that—I hope.
It won’t be easy placating Jewish suspicions without rousing Muslim ire, and his main ties are with Muslims, blacks, and guilty limousine liberals. He already has provoked some complaints from Hamas after speaking to a Jewish group that applauded his assurances, although Hamas may just be faking it in order to disarm suspicions that Obama is secretly a Muslim.
He aroused a lot of doubts among blacks when he first appeared on the scene, as not really part of the urban American black experience, but he seems to have overcome that. Bill & Hill helped that by their blatant “southern strategy.”
(Said in my best, lightly sarcastic yiddish voice.)
I love comments like this. This effete elitist is typical of the supposedly educated Leftist. According to them, like this schmuck, they're smarter than everyone else.
I wonder if Mr. Smartypants paid any attention at all to Jeremiah Wright or this other putz, Pfleger, which means "phlegm ball". ..... not really. But close.
Of course, he didn't pay attention to the likes of Wright, or Pfleger the momser. Why? Because his liberalism is more important to him than his Judaism ... in fact, it's so important to him that his common sense has disappeared with his humility.
People like him remind my of my brother-in-lib ... and he makes me sick.
They seem to have a long record of not really listening to their God either. One or two decent kings in their entire history (and of course God never wanted them to have a king at all) and even Solomon went bad in the end. The Jews are Gods Chosen People. Chosen to prove godliness can not be achieved through the Law. And of course chosen to give man the Messiah.
Warning! This is a high-volume ping list.
your comment is about as appropriate as the pompous, arrogant nitwit quoted at the end of the article.
Sorry but that is the truth.
Yes, they will support him. He’s a liberal democrat.
Yes, they will support him. He’s a liberal democrat.
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