It won’t get a fraction of the media hype of Black History Month or whatever theme March and April were, yet May is “Jewish-American Heritage Month.” As an American of Jewish descent, I don’t do hyphenated nonsense, but as this follows Holocaust Remembrance Day last month and another Islamic terror attack, let’s examine further.
Since the election of Herbert Hoover 94 years ago, the average Jewish vote for a Democrat presidential candidate hovers around 75%. This number is far higher than that of any other religious group. The Jewish vote for Barack Obama, for example, was around 33 points higher than he scored with Protestants and more than 20 points higher than among Catholics.
But maybe the Biden administration’s array of failures that are alienating Democrats’ other reliable constituencies — black, Hispanic and youth — offers hope.
I left Democrats behind by age 20, mainly because I realized the socio-political system that the left wishes to destroy is the only system that’s benefited Jews during centuries of wandering the earth.
The preponderance of Jewish people, however, don’t appreciate this miracle and instead remain stubbornly faithful to Democrats, even as Republican presidents provide vital support to Israel and other matters of importance.
Following the philo-semitic Republican administrations of George W. Bush and his father, one of the Trump administration’s best achievements was the Abraham Accords between Israel, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Morocco and Sudan; this led to the normalization of relations and augmented stability. They also recognized Israel’s ownership of the strategically-important Golan Heights that the small Jewish state won in the Six-Day War.
At the United Nations, Ambassador Nikki Haley removed us from the repugnant Human Rights Council in 2018 due to perpetual anti-Israel bias, and the last administration also opposed the BDS movement, which seeks to destroy Israel’s economy.
Biden may not be as bad as Jimmy Carter or the overtly anti-Israel Obama, but he’s allowing the party and his communications team to move away from bipartisan support for Israel. Radicals like Rep. Ilhan Omar openly embrace anti-Semitic policies, and the ongoing failure of liberal leaders to condemn them is disgusting.
Most egregiously, Biden seeks to renew a noxious Iran nuclear deal, which hurts our Arab allies and endangers Israel’s survival without any positives.
As most Democrats turn their backs on Israel — as well as strong borders, policing, religion, free speech, and the constitution — why do Jewish voters obstinately continue to reward progressive candidates?
“We have an opportunity to increase the Jewish vote in the Republican Party,” says former Senator Norman Coleman at the opening of the #RNC’s Jewish Community Center in #BocaRaton, #Florida pic.twitter.com/nRCQvdzeKM
— Leonardo Feldman (@LeoFeldmanNEWS) May 2, 2022
Former President Donald Trump recently lamented this political reality when he declared, “The Jewish people in the United States either don’t like Israel or don’t care about Israel,” then added “the evangelical Christians love Israel more than Jews in this country.”
It’s tough but true, and partly because Jews are over-educated and extremely irreligious. Therefore, on wedge issues like abortion access, gay rights, and gun control, Jews rely on shibboleths and are the most liberal of any ethnic group.
“I once thought that Jews becoming more assimilated and secular were driving forces to be Democrats,” a Jewish Republican in Indiana told Alpha News. “Most Orthodox Jews are politically conservative, supportive of Israel, and support the idea that a woman can get an abortion only if her life is in danger or the fetus can’t survive outside of the womb. To have a decent conversation with a Jewish liberal is like speaking to a wall and hoping you get a logical response.”
Sadly, many Jewish voters do not weigh Israel heavily when voting, but maybe they’ll consider joining other traditional left-wing blocs in ending their intransigent loyalty to a party that hasn’t valued their core interests in decades.
A.J. Kaufman
A.J. Kaufman is an Alpha News columnist. His work has appeared in the Baltimore Sun, Florida Sun-Sentinel, Indianapolis Star, Israel National News, Orange County Register, St. Cloud Times, Star-Tribune, and across AIM Media Midwest and the Internet. Kaufman previously worked as a school teacher and military historian.
