Obama, Israel and Jewish Voters

By Ethan Klapper
American University

President Barack Obama was elected last November with a strong mandate from the Jewish population. According to a New York Times exit poll, as much as 78 percent of the Jewish population voted for Obama.

While that number is consistent with recent trends of Jews voting for the Democratic candidate for president, have the Obama administration's recent foreign policy stances towards Israel caused some Jews to regret voting for Obama?

Harvard University professor and author Alan Dershowitz thinks so. In a July Wall Street Journal op-ed, Dershowitz accused the Obama administration of pulling a "bait and switch" with Jewish voters.

For many Jews, Dershowitz included, the issue of West Bank settlements has been the major point of contention between Jews and the White House. While the Bush administration was largely opposed to the expansion of the settlements, they did allow exceptions. But Obama has taken a much harder stance — opposing the settlements without exception.

Perhaps most disturbing to Jews has been the role of White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel. Emanuel, the highest-ranking Jew in the administration and an ardent supporter of Israel, at one point in the spring appeared to link negotiations with Iran to the settlement issue.

But Obama, like his predecessor, seems determined to bring peace between Israel and the Palestinian Authority — perhaps the largest issue on the mind of Jewish voters. On Sept. 22, Obama held a trilateral talk with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in New York.

In his prepared remarks, President Obama spoke more of the delegation to work on the issue instead of what actually happened in the meeting.

"Success depends on all sides acting with a sense of urgency," he said. "And that is why I have asked Secretary [of State Hillary] Clinton and Special Envoy [George] Mitchell to carry forward the work that we do here today."

In principal, the Obama administration will likely continue to support Israel. But with a new government in Israel that has taken a harder line with the U.S., tension over Iran and other political pressures, it might be more difficult to see principle translate into practice.

If that's the truth, Obama will be alienating an important constituency. It may be too early to tell, but in 2012, Jews might just look the other way. In the coming months, Obama and his senior advisers need to keep this in mind.

This issue is not political, however. It's a long overdue (and deadly) issue that needs to be addressed.

Ethan Klapper is a junior studying journalism and political science at American University in Washington, D.C. A native of Rye Brook, N.Y., he has held internships at The Washington Post, The Westchester, N.Y. Journal News and mediabistro.com.

[Posted 11/16/09]