Kenneth Baer, writing in The New Republic on Democrats and the Jewish vote:
For the 5,000 pro-Israel activists attending the AIPAC Policy Conference this week in Washington, his story was a familiar one: born and raised in the suburbs of New York City in a staunchly liberal Democratic household; pushed right by Jimmy Carter’s lukewarm support for Israel; heard Ronald Reagan talk about "peace through strength" and crossed over to the Republican camp; and now George W. Bush’s war on terrorism has kept him there.
That Ari Fleischer, President Bush’s former press secretary, was the one describing this journey should give no one pause. But that his remarks were met with knowing laughter and, at times, thunderous applause points is a growing problem for Democrats: Jewish-Americans, one of their most loyal constituencies, are now up-for-grabs.
Baer notes that six congressional districts in
Kerry lost more than 250,000 votes from Gore’s total in Kings (Brooklyn), Queens,
Nassau, and Suffolk counties, four of the most Jewish counties in the country.
The impact of this shift could affect the future makeup of the U.S. Senate:
With the potential for two open Senate races in New Jersey in 2006 and 2008 . . . and another open seat one year later in New York if Hillary Clinton vacates it to run for President, the shifting of hundreds of thousands of votes in New York and New Jersey could hurt Democrats . . .
And not just in
Beyond that, don’t forget that the
New York area is the center of the Jewish-American world. Opinions there shape opinions throughout the community (especially in places like Broward and Dade Counties, Florida, otherwise known as the sixth and seventh boroughs of New York) which could not only move votes in critical states, but also deny Democrats millions of dollars in political donations.
For the future, Democrats may want to think of leaders other than Howard "Even-Handed" Dean and John "Jimmy Carter or Jim Baker" Kerry.
UPDATE: Ed Lasky emails this article by Rachel Zabarkes Friedman, on “Senator