Gore endorsed by congress-critter but it may not be helpful
WorldNetDaily: 'Blame-the-Jews' official endorses Gore:
"At a question-and-answer session with anti-war activists, [US Rep. Jim] Moran [D-VA] said, 'If it were not for the strong support of the Jewish community for this war with Iraq we would not be doing this. ... The leaders of the Jewish community are influential enough that they could change the direction of where this is going and I think they should.'
"[House Minority Leader Nancy] Pelosi [D-CA] said Moran's comments on the rationale for war 'were not only inappropriate, they were offensive and have no place in the Democratic Party.'"
Even a whiff of anti-semitism would be the kiss of death for a mainstream politician of either party. Moran seems to have complicated his own situation by taking contributions from "the Wahhabi Lobby" according to this story. [NOTE: I don't have the full text of Moran's remarks, only what appears here. It is possible that, taken in their entirety, Pelosi's characterization is accurate.]
OTOH, it might be useful to examine the Moran and Pelosi quotes above. Is it "inappropritate and offensive" to discuss the influence of the Israeli lobby in America on our Mideast policies? Suppose Moran had commented on the influence of Greek Americans on our policy vis-a-vis Cyprus, or Irish Americans vis-a-vis Ulster; would that be, in Pelosi's words, "inappropriate and offensive"?
Attacking people and opposing their political and social aspirations merely because of their religion or ethnicity is clearly wrong and highly reprehensible. But, this cannot be used as an excuse to shut down dialog on important matters of public policy.
posted by J. Keen Holland @ 12:47 AM
3 comments
3 Comments:
Gore would win the popular vote in the People's Republic of Alexandria, VA with or without Moran's endorsement, which would be more like the "kiss of death" in the real world.
Suppose Moran had commented on the influence of Greek Americans on our policy vis-a-vis Cyprus, or Irish Americans vis-a-vis Ulster; would that be, in Pelosi's words, "inappropriate and offensive"?
I don't agree with Moran, but you can find many criticism of the Greek Lobby or Greek American including by members of Congress. Same with Cuban Amercan Lobby, Irish American etc.
Thanks for your comments.
Ed, you are certainly right about the City of Alexandria - in some ways the San Francisco of the East. I am not so sure about the rest of Moran's district, there are some parts of Fairfax County where Gore might not be too popular.
Bob, you made my point precisely. A comment about the Greek-, Cuban- or Irish-American lobby would not elicit that sort of response from Pelosi. And Pelosi's, IMHO, over-reaction seems designed to shut down debate on the important and legitimate question whether the interests of Israel and America are at all points congruent.
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