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Chicagoland Pro-Israel Political Update
July 22, 2018
A newsletter for people willing to think for themselves
Russian To Judgment
Trump disgraced himself and our country in Helsinki. Perhaps even more disgracefully, the Republican-controlled Congress is doing nothing to check him, and they'll try to confirm his Supreme Court nominee as if all of this is perfectly normal.
The pro-Israel community cannot let Republicans distract us from the danger posed by Trump with scare tactics designed to challenge a clear record of support by Democrats for Israel.
Confused about IfNotNow and the controversy they've attempted to create around Birthright? I've got a few articles that might help clarify matters.
Israel passed a problematic Nation-State law.
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Friends,
Today we observe Tisha B'Av. We are taught that the Second Temple was destroyed because of causeless hatred. We can disagree with each other, but if we disagree, let's disagree civilly, focusing on the issues and not each other. For as Jordana Horn writes, causeless hatred can only be fought with causeless love.
Never in American history has an American president disgraced himself or our country as egregiously as Trump did in Helsinki last week
. And yet few Republicans in the House and Senate running for re-election stood up to him, and none have taken any action. Last week, House Republicans blocked a move to subpoena Trump's translator to find out what really went on in the closed-door meeting between Trump and Putin. What are they afraid we'll find out? That Hillary Clinton was right? That Trump doesn't understand what "no" means?
Instead, Republicans quickly fell into line and swallowed Trump's ludicrous walk-backs. Max Boot writes that "
Most of the Republicans in Washington know better, but they are too cowardly to say so - or, even more important, to do anything to stop Trump. They are giving in to Putin so they may get Brett M. Kavanaugh in return. It is not a good bargain."
Why haven't Trump's supporters abandoned him? Charles Blow writes that
Finally, someone is unapologetically fighting for white supremacy, white culture and white identity, for protectionism, xenophobia and Christian supremacy. No matter how much he lies, no matter how much he fumbles, no matter how much he betrays the greater America, Trump will remain the hero of white, Republican, racist America.
And, because these people were such a large portion of the Republican Party even before Trump emerged as their champion, traditional Republicans who at least talked the game of inclusion, of principles and of Christian, family values, are now tucking their tails to save their behinds.
Trump has lost all moral authority to appoint a Supreme Court Justice. Any Republican who allows him to do so is complicit--as is any American who votes Republican in November. What more evidence do we need that under Republican rule, Congress is incapable of fulfilling its obligation as a co-equal branch of government designed to be a check on the executive branch?
I almost feel sorry for our Republican friends
. They want so badly to talk about anything but Trump and change the subject to Democratic support for Israel. But they can't cite votes in Congress because both parties overwhelmingly support Israel. It was a Republican, Sen.Rand Paul, who recently voted to cut aid to Israel. They can't cite polls on Democratic and Republican support for Israel, because the flaws in those polls are too well-known.
They thought they found a Democratic candidate for Congress who supported BDS, but Scott Wallace firmly opposes BDS. They thought that Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez might be their poster child, but alas, she said that "I believe absolutely in Israel's right to exist. I am a proponent of the two state solution." That sure ain't BDS. In a third interview, she said she was engaging in conversation and educating herself (she didn't walk anything back, nor did she elaborate on her previous remarks).
Both the right and the left are finding fault with Ocasio-Cortez's statements on Israel.
Ocasio-Cortez didn't campaign on Israel. It wasn't an issue for her.
She is one candidate out of 450 Democratic candidates for the House and Senate who will be on the ballot in November. Perhaps it makes more sense to focus on protecting our country from the danger posed by the ignorance and bigotry of Donald Trump and his Republican enablers than to obsess over the still unclear, still developing views of one candidate for Congress.
If you think Trump and the Republicans are making America great again, then vote Republican. But don't tell those of us who oppose Trump's dangerous policies that Democrats don't support Israel, especially based on a questionable sample size of one. Don't use Israel as a political football for partisan gain. That's not what it means to be pro-Israel.
IfNotNow, Birthright?
Birthright is the program that allows any Jewish youth to visit Israel for free. IfNotNow opposes the occupation and recently staged walkouts on Birthright. All eligible young adults should participate in (and not walk out on) Birthright. Many in the mainstream pro-Israel community are concerned about the occupation. But by refusing to support Zionism and Israel's right to exist as a Jewish state, IfNotNow puts itself almost by definition outside the large pro-Israel tent, thereby damaging whatever credibility it might have among the people it is ostensibly trying to persuade.
Read Yishai Fleisher, the International Spokesman for the Jewish Community of Hebron, for his critique of what passes for pro-Israel advocacy in some circles. (Fleisher is also right about the Jewish connection to the land, but we don't have to renounce our historical connection to the land to accept the reality that without a two-state solution, Israel cannot remain both Jewish and democratic.)
Elan Karoll writes about fighting BDS on campus. Eric Cortellessa argues that the tactics we've been using to fight BDS are counterproductive. Batya Ungar-Sargon sees Birthright as a metonymy for the relationship between American Jews and Israel. You'll find something in all of these articles to disagree with, but if you read them all, you'll have a much better understanding.
Israel's new Nation-State Law is problematic. Here is the full text (the reference to "settlement" is a general reference, not a reference to what we in English refer to as "settlements"). Gershom Gorenberg, the ADL, and Michael Koplow (who
explains that "Israel is a Jewish state, and
there is nothing wrong with it proudly declaring that fact. Israel's Jewishness is a manifestation of why it exists and what makes it unique") explain the concerns.
Video Clip of the Week.
Sacha Baron Cohen. Ten minutes, but it's worth it, and you'll see why everyone is talking about it (and talking about who's in it).
The Fine Print (in regular type): This newsletter usually runs on Sunday mornings. Unless explicitly stated otherwise, my views do not necessarily reflect the views of any candidates or organizations that I support or am associated with. My views might not even be my views
tomorrow
; I reserve the right to change my mind as I learn more, and sometimes I make myself mad too.
Intelligent, well-informed people may disagree with me; seek out opposing views and decide for yourself. When I link to an article, it doesn't mean I agree with everything the author of that article has ever said or even that I agree with everything in that article; it means that the article supports or elaborates on the point I was making. Advertisements reflect the views of the advertisers, not necessarily of me, and advertisers are solely responsible for the content of their advertisements. I read, value, and encourage replies to my newsletters, but I don't always have time to acknowledge replies or to engage in one-on-one discussion.
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