I have no idea where all of these responses to my simple post are coming from.
The fact is that Barry Goldwater was not Halakhically Jewish. It has nothing to do with conservatism or liberalism or why American liberal Jews didn't like him.
I don't know where this business with Sarah Palin is coming from. Her mother certainly wasn't Jewish, and she has certainly never Halakhically converted.
What's the matter with everybody today?
Her mother was, although not observant, as well as both maternal grandparents.