YDA Jewish Caucus

(JTA) A leading political newspaper chose a Jewish Democrat as its congressional rookie of the year.

The Politico named Ron Klein of Florida for his policy ideas, knowledge of how to wield political power and fund-raising ability.

Klein had also notably broken with his Democratic colleagues to push a joint resolution with Rep. Connie Mack (R-Fla.) condemning the threat that Iran poses in Latin America.

Klein, a self-described pro-business Democrat, represents a district that includes wealthy neighborhoods in Palm Beach and the working-class factories of Fort Lauderdale.

He introduced legislation to help stabilize insurance for homeowners in hurricane-prone districts.

“There is a solution for every single problem,” Klein told The Politico. “We sat down with various groups, talked about the insurance crisis and said, ‘We’re going to find an answer.’ ”

Klein’s colleagues on Capitol Hill described the 14-year veteran of the Florida Legislature as energetic and knowledgeable.

Klein, who has been known to spend hours making fund-raising calls, has in excess of $1.4 million in campaign funds on hand, according to Federal Election Commission records.

The Young Democrats of America Jewish Caucus sent a questionnaire to each of the Democratic Presidential candidates to get their views on a series of issues of particular concern to the Jewish community.  As they answer, their responses will be posted in their entirety.  The nine questions posed to each candidate are as follows:

1. What conditions do you see as necessary for fostering peace between Israelis and Palestinians?

2. What role should the United States play in building Israeli- Palestinian peace?

3. In your view, what kind of a threat does Iran pose to the United States and to our allies?  What should we be doing about it?

4. What would your administration do about the situation in Darfur?

5. On what basis should the United States formulate its immigration policy (i.e. who should be let in for what reasons)?  What do you plan to do with those who have migrated to this country illegally?

6. What role should the government play in addressing poverty and hunger?  Should social welfare programs targeting the poor be expanded, kept about the same, or shifted to private forms of assistance?

7. What restrictions, if any, should be placed on the ability to have an abortion?  Should laws be put in place requiring parental notification when minors request an abortion?

8. How would you characterize the role of the Faith-Based Initiatives program?  How would it change, if at all, in your administration?

9. Are you in favor of or opposed to a voucher program that would subsidize public school students to attend private and/or parochial schools?  In what circumstances would this be acceptable/unacceptable?

(JTA) Jewish groups praised the passage in the U.S. Senate of the Sudan Divestment Act.

The bill passed unanimously late Wednesday prohibits federal dealings with companies that deal with Sudan’s oil, mineral and arms industries and provides legal protections to U.S. states considering similar measures. A similar bill passed the U.S. House of Representatives in the spring.

Jewish groups have led the drive to isolate Sudan’s government until it allows peacekeepers into the Darfur region to keep government-allied militias from massacring civilians. So far, the militias – part of the government’s effort to quell separatist aspirations – have killed as many as 400,000 civilians.

“Once signed by President Bush, the Sudan Divestment and Accountability Act will force companies invested in Sudan to choose between receiving lucrative U.S. government contracts and funding a government responsible for killing hundreds of thousands of its own citizens,” said Ruth Messinger, the president of American Jewish World Service, the group that has led Jewish community activism on the issue.

B’nai B’rith International also praised the bill’s passage

WASHINGTON (JTA) — It’s still a Hillary vs. Rudy race for American Jews, but national polls suggest that their top challengers are rapidly gaining ground.

This week the American Jewish Committee released a survey that showed U.S. Jews giving the highest favorable ratings to U.S. Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.) and Rudy Giuliani, the former New York mayor.

The AJC phone survey of 1,000 Jewish Americans found that Clinton was rated favorably by 53 percent of American Jews, with Giuliani finishing second at 41 percent.

Among Jews who identify as Democrats, Clinton scored a 70 percent favorable rating, compared to 48 percent for former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards and 45 percent for Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.). Giuliani registered 75 percent among Jewish Republicans, followed by Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) at 49 percent, and ex-Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and former Tennessee Sen. Fred Thompson at 32 percent.

The findings come as polls show former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee leading in Iowa and tied with Giuliani across the country, and Obama gaining ground on Clinton nationally and in position to challenge her in several early primary states.

Respondents in the AJC survey were not asked about Huckabee, because at the time the poll was conducted last month he did not meet the organization’s threshold of 10% in national polls.

Clinton and Giuliani are prominent political fixtures with national profiles in the city with the largest Jewish population in the country. Both boast prominent Jewish supporters and have not been shy about taking lead rolls in advancing causes backed by the Jewish community.

Giuliani’s strong showing in the AJC poll, which was conducted Nov. 6-25, is unusual in a community that trends strongly Democratic. The survey, with a 3 percent margin of error, had Giuliani with a higher favorable rating than all the Democrats except Clinton, including Obama and Edwards, who tied at 38 percent.

According to the survey, 58 percent of Jews identify as Democrats, 26 percent as independents and 15 percent as Republicans, diverging from the third-third-third breakdown that is the norm in polls of the general U.S. population.

“Even though the sample is heavily weighted to the Democratic side, Giuliani does better than two of the three leading Democratic candidates,” said David Singer, the AJC’s director of research.

“Giuliani is a known commodity in the Jewish community,” Singer said. “He was the mayor of New York City, where a significant piece of the Jewish population is familiar with him.”

The Giuliani campaign did not return multiple requests for comment.

Giuliani’s popularity among Jews derives partly from his unstinting support for Israel, but also because he is the most moderate Republican, corresponding with the positioning of some Jewish organizational leaders and pro-Israel activists who are hawkish on foreign policy but liberal on domestic issues like church-state separation, gay marriage and abortion.

“There’s no pretending he’s not a moderate,” said Steve Rabinowitz, a political strategist who is backing Clinton’s candidacy. “The only Republicans who are acceptable to Jews are moderates.”

Huckabee, a Southern Baptist pastor, has sought to position himself as the choice of Christian conservatives while also highlighting his ability to work with both sides of the aisle during his years as governor of Arkansas.

Even while noting his staunchly conservative issues on social issues, several liberal commentators have praised Huckabee for his emphasis as governor on fighting poverty and improving race relations. These commentators also point out that he has drawn criticism from economic conservatives for pushing through some tax increases.

Some conservatives have slammed Huckabee as well for refusing to stop benefits for the children of illegal immigrants.

Still, Rabinowitz said, Giuliani would clearly be the more formidable candidate.

“Of course Democrats would rather run against Huckabee, who is a true conservative,” he said.

The 58 percent self-identification was the statistic that Jewish Democrats plucked from the AJC poll. The National Jewish Democratic Council noted a steady rise in Jewish Democratic self-identification, from 48 percent in the AJC survey in 2002.

“As a Jewish Democrat I am encouraged by this news, but not surprised,” Ira Forman, the NJDC’s executive director. “The new Democratic Congress has been great on Israel, and American Jews side with the Democratic agenda on all major domestic priorities.”

Giuliani was the only candidate whose unfavorable rating, 38 percent, was in a dead heat with his favorable rating. That’s the norm for Clinton in polls of the general population, but among Jews her favorable rating was far ahead of her unfavorable rating of 29 percent.

Par for the course, said Ann Lewis, Clinton’s senior adviser.

“From providing universal health care and calling for a new energy policy to standing up for the security of Israel, our community knows her as a trusted and reliable friend,” Lewis said to JTA in an e-mail. “She has the strength, experience, and the saichel” — Yiddish for “common sense” — “to be a great president.”

Clinton has assiduously cultivated Jewish communal leaders, almost always making time to address every major Washington forum, trending hawkish on Iran and becoming a leader on combating incitement in Arab nations.

The poll was a bright spot for a campaign that has seen Obama nip on Clinton’s heels in recent national polls. The latest surveys show Obama leading or even with Clinton in early primary states and as little as 10 percent behind in national polls.

Singer said the AJC was still examining subgroups closely, but said one revelation undermined arguments in recent years that the Orthodox are increasingly becoming Republican.

Self-identified Orthodox Jews constituted 8 percent of the respondents, he said. Of those, 30 percent were Republicans and 42 percent were Democrats.

“There’s a tendency in the general media to equate Orthodox Jews as Republican, and it’s clear they’re much more open to Republicans” than other Jews, Singer said. “But it’s also clear that a plurality are Democratic.”

Democrats must succeed in 2008. There are no ifs, ands, or buts about it. The last seven years, a turbulent downward spiral of the American Government, led by an incompetent, unpredictable, unrelenting demagogue has been three steps back from the two forward steps of the last great American president, William Jefferson Clinton.

Young Democrats, especially Young Jewish Democrats, have a lot riding on this election. Political strategists will tell you that the highest voting block in America is the Jewish population, but the lowest is young Americans. While young Jews don’t necessarily fall into the second category, the Jewish Caucus of the Young Democrats of America has a responsibility to get its constituency to the polls on November 8, 2008.

Eight (8) major Democrats have announced their intention to seek next year’s (2008) nomination, including a Hispanic, and African American, and a woman (Others have announced, but have withdrawn). While no Jew declared his/her intention to run, our interest is no less peaked. Competition is appreciated, desired, and truly compelling, but a Democratic ticket will not officially be named until August 28, 2008, and thus, the first issue that the Jewish Caucus takes aim at: Why have Americans become subject to 2-year long campaigns?

YDAJC cannot condone the expenditure of over $420 million (up to now) by candidates who have been announcing their candidacy since December 2006. As important as spreading one’s message is and while YDAJC would never consider telling people where to send their money, $420 million over the previous year could be spent on much more than political messages. America has a growing homelessness epidemic, rising college tuition costs that are being passed onto its’ high school graduates, and the continued disparity between the upper 1% of Americans and the impoverished of not only our own country, but our neighbors on this continent and across the globe.

That withstanding, there will be an election in the fall of 2008, and Young Jewish Democrats will be out in droves to elect our next president. The issues we are most concerned about are not much different that the rest of America; 1) The War in Iraq & the US’s strained relationship with our allies and the Middle East 2) Ending the Genocide in Darfur and 3) Immigration Reform.

YDAJC takes clear, concise positions on all 3 of these issues:

◦ The War in Iraq was a mistake. We must begin to bring our troops home as soon as logistically and realistically possible, leaving the Iraqi security forces responsible to patrol and protect their own land. It is America’s continued presence in Iraq that the region is considered “unstable”. Because of the unimaginable hard-headedness of our President, relationships with foreign allies have been strained, and America has taken what can almost be considered a “go at it alone” attitude. We must invite our allies to the diplomatic table, accept the embarrassment of our actions, and take the necessary non-military actions necessary to bring stability to the country.

◦ As many as 400,000 people have been killed in Darfur. Another 2.5 million have been driven from their homes and into danger. The threat of rape, torture, murder and malnutrition pursue the women and children of Darfur wherever they flee. The comparisons to the Holocaust are clear and need not be spoken. World leaders must unite now to end the genocide and establish a lasting peace in Darfur. It is not as difficult as it may seem for the YDAJC to tell President Bush to pull troops from Iraq, and then tell him and UN Sect. General Ban Ki-Moon to put a UN Peacekeeping Force into Sudan.  We have no qualms about the fact that military force, coupled with increased diplomatic pressure and humanitarian aid must be utilized to end this horrific 4-year genocide. Our next President must make this a priority of his/her administration.

◦ Once upon a time, Jews were the mass immigrants of this country. Hard work, dedication, family values and a close relationship with G-d is still the backbone Jewish Americans (Democrat and Republican alike) stand on today. The YDAJC does not consider any human being “illegal”. Any human being who wishes to create a better opportunity for his/her family or themselves should be afforded such opportunities. The YDAJC opposes the continued creation of bureaucratic barriers on the path to citizenship. Congress and the next President must work diligently to forge a clear path to citizenship to all prospective immigrants. It is up to the individual to adhere to the laws and precepts of our country, but the cultural differences and potential national pride that new Americans bring to this country is what has made the “salad bowl” so beautiful and delicious.

Favorable candidates to the YDAJC will be able to prove competency on the issues stated as well as on all other topics of national interest. America needs a strong leader who will implement public policy that improves the quality of life for all Americans. America needs a leader who will listen to the real constituents, not the special interests and their lobbyists. We are at a crossroads in our country. The promise of uniting as opposed to dividing was broken a long time ago. America’s next great leader not only has to lead for the next 4 (possibly  years, but they will have to reach into the past and take action to heal the wounds of the current administration.