JustASC

The National Jewish Democratic Council and the Republican Jewish Coalition trade last-second snipes over the NJDC’s support for  Democratic challenger Jeanne Shaheen in th New Hampshire Senate race. The RJC calls the NJDC hypocrites for an e-mail blasting Republican incumbent John Sununu’s record on Israel — the NJDC, after all, has complained that the Republicans have been using Israel as a “wedge issue.”

But shouldn’t a distinction be drawn between messages that compare candidates’ records on Israel and those that compare entire parties? The NJDC message compares candidates, just as the RJC’s extensive ad buy focused (usually misleadingly, but that’s another argument) on Obama’s record. That’s in sharp contrast to the RJC’s ads of two years ago, when they suggested Joe Lieberman’s loss in the Conn. primary proved Democrats are weak on Israel, and other ads charged that Cindy Sheehan, Al Sharpton, and Jimmy Carter represent the Democratic mainstream.

Transforming Israel into a partisan issue has long been (or at least is supposed to be) a no-no among Jewish lobbyists, which is why most PACs try to stay nonpartisan and court friends on both sides of the aisle (as we are finding out at this very momment, you never know which party will be in a position to help or hurt Israel). Max Fisher, the “godfather” of Jewish Republicans as well as a giant among Jewish philanthropists, probably does a 360 in his grave whenever the RJC suggests the Democratic Party is no friend of Israel.

So the broad brush is bad. But if they can’t talk about candidates, what’s left for these affinity groups to do?

Rabbi David Ellenson, president of Reform movement’s Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, comes out against California’s Proposition 8, which would eliminate the right of same-sex couples to marry in California:

I see no reason why religious believers like me have any less right than my more fundamentalist brothers and sisters to speak for religion in the public square. Votes against same-sex unions discriminate against gays and lesbians and run counter to the ethos of love that the Bible teaches. It also discriminates against those of us whose religious beliefs mandate us to perform same-sex weddings.

Rabbi David Seidenberg has composed a non-partisan prayer for Election Day:

May it be good in Your eyes to give a wise heart
to whomever we elect today
and may You raise for us a government whose rule is for good and blessing
to bring justice and peace to all the inhabitants of the world and to Jerusalem,
for rulership is Yours!

(Hat tip to Larry at Ben Yehuda Press.)

So I vote this morning in Teaneck — and with long lines and a broken machine (leaving one machine for my entire district) things are a little tense. A middle-aged couple behind me is discussing the ballot sheet they’re holding between them, and a volunteer tells them they can’t discuss the ballot within the polling place.

“What are you, the gestapo?” asks my neighbor — because, you know, it’s never too early to reach for the Nazi analogy

My wife gently explains that there are rules about electioneering.

“But this is my wife. I can’t talk to my wife?” the guy says.

First, how does he know it’s your wife? we ask. And no, you can’t talk to anybody at a polling place about ballot issues. The volunteer is just enforcing the rules. 

“But anyone can see this is my wife,” says the guy.

And then I realize the beauty of democracy — even morons get to vote.