Why Do Jewish Democrats Keep On Loving Barack Obama?
On the podcast yesterday, Peter asked me a provocative question that I didn't manage to answer fully before we'd moved on. I'd like to give the question the answer it deserves.
Peter wanted to know why, even after President Obama's gift to the Palestinians of the 1967 lines as a precondition for peace negotiations (with no reciprocal obligations from them whatsoever), his approval rating among Jewish Democrats remains dizzyingly high. How, Peter wondered, could they possibly give him a warm reception at AIPAC a few days after that speech? What's it going to take for them to leave his corner?
There's a lot going on here.
On a shallow level, there's an element of family tradition involved -- Bubbie and Zaydie voted Democrat and they'd turn over in their graves if I voted Republican, etcetera -- but the issue can't be written off as a joke. The "Democrat, right or wrong" attitude bespeaks a fundamental discomfort among American Jews about their place in American society. For all their -- our -- apparently seamless integration, there's a thread of anxiety remaining: we have to be more American than the Americans, more of the people than the people themselves. And the Democratic Party, justly or otherwise, is perceived -- certainly within the educated, successful milieus where most American Jews are to be found -- as more of the people than the Republican.
To make matters worse, the Republican Party represents many of the characteristics reflexively applied to Jews. They're positive qualities, but they've been used against us for so long that many American Jews feel more comfortable aligned politically against them. They include a belief in the fundamental virtue of capitalism, a concern with fiscal responsibility, with keeping the government out of your pocket and out of your decision-making, with taking primary responsibility for your own success rather than expecting it to be bestowed from on high, with ensuring that your children's future is brighter than your own (and its corollary that you don't feed off a public trough and expect your children to pay for it). When applied to Jews, these positives have been twisted to impute greed, miserliness, selfishness (a disinclination to redistribute income or to spread the public wealth), callous disregard for the less fortunate, clannishness, and so on. Jews have been tainted with these slurs from time immemorial. It is perhaps little wonder that they flock to the party that purports to be all about inclusiveness and social rather than fiscal responsibility.
I'm generalizing here, but I think it's safe to say that as a group, American Jews have never felt absolutely certain of their acceptance as Americans. They don't just want to blend in; they want to be part of the family. Hence the high rate of intermarriage and flight from religious observance. Jewish Democrats lean heavily on their party affiliation as a means of expressing their attachment to the glorious melting pot: to the frontier of tolerance and freedom where at long last they can finally relax.
Consider the relationship between American Jews and black Americans. The Jews, particularly those who themselves or whose parents were directly involved, still strongly feel their affiliation with their black countrymen and take just pride in the Jewish role in the civil rights movement (even though the black population has largely written them off, causing them lasting, if rarely expressed, grief). That most noble of social ventures is inextricably bound up in Jewish minds with the Democratic Party. It's profoundly important for Jewish Democrats to feel -- again, not just be perceived to be, but to feel -- on the side of the downtrodden, the afflicted, the disenfranchised. This is all the more true in view of the fact that they are for the most part the polar opposite of that demographic.
Now, Israel throws a monkey wrench into all of this. First of all, a defense of Israel creates the profoundly threatening fear in Jewish minds of suggesting possible grounds for an accusation of dual loyalties. And if that weren't enough, it amounts to a celebration of all that which should be censured by the proper-thinking person: a plucky, weirdly successful little upstart that takes its own initiative to defend itself and is not sufficiently inclined to listen to the advice of its elders and betters.
Remember that American Jews for the most part don't seriously think of Israel as a place to live, in part because of its assumed relative discomforts and in part because it defines exactly the kind of quotidian, existential uncertainty they want never to experience. It's important in a general way that Israel exist, for vague, uncomfortable religious reasons that don't really apply (or don't seem to apply) to Heather and Shel Abromowitz in Shaker Heights and their Ivy-league kids, or to Clover and Shep Rosenthal who are just getting their organic barley bar off the ground out of their garage in Marin. Israel is for different kinds of Jews, Jews who are all about archaic ideas like turf and labels and carrying a gun. Fourth-generation Jewish Democrats want no part of any of that, not even by association. So until Israel really is under imminent mortal threat, or until an American president goes so far as to send US troops to force Israel's surrender or to sell F-15s to Hamas, the bulk of American Jews will almost certainly remain in the Democratic camp.
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Jun '10
Re: Why Do Jewish Democrats Keep On Loving Barack Obama?
It's funny, because the civil rights movement in America was supported by Republicans, not Democrats. The list of pro-segregation Democrats is a long one.
I think your thoughtful argument can apply to several ethnic groups, and the Irish come to mind. The Democrat party is a religion to many Irish, even though their blind loyalty makes little sense. I did see movement away from knee-jerk support for the IRA among many hard core Irish-Americans after 9/11 definitively showed them that terrorism tactics, regardless of the target, are not the way causes are advanced or wrongs are righted in the 21st Century. I imagine as Obama's anti-Israel stance is fully absorbed, many American Jews will have a similar epiphany and begin to act and vote more rationally.
Edited on Jun 9, 2011 at 3:49amAug '10
Re: Why Do Jewish Democrats Keep On Loving Barack Obama?
A good analysis Judith, but somewhat incomplete, I think. David Mamet - the world famous Jewish playwright - just wrote a piece for the Village Voice entitled Why I Am No Longer A Brain Dead Liberal. Pride, stubbornness, and shame all enter into the equation. Many decades of logical absurdities and willful blindness have created habitual reactions to conservative ideas. Here's the link:
http://www.villagevoice.com/2008-03-11/news/why-i-am-no-longer-a-brain-dead-liberal/full
Edited on Jun 9, 2011 at 4:06amMar '11
Re: Why Do Jewish Democrats Keep On Loving Barack Obama?
Judith Levy
[American Jews] don't just want to blend in; they want to be part of the family.
I think you hit the nail on the head, although I would go a little beyond and argue that they do feel part of the family and furthermore the vast majority of non-Jewish Americans wouldn't think otherwise either. So when asked why support a President or other politicians whose policies can be considered less than friendly towards Israel, many American Jews will indignantly respond that they are American citizens and the interests of America, as they view them, are what determines whom they support and their indignation is real. As you know, these are people with great fondness for Israel who will always be supportive. It is an interesting twist on the "America first" theme.
Re: Why Do Jewish Democrats Keep On Loving Barack Obama?
Thanks for this. It rings true. These days, I wonder if abortion does not have something to do with it. Orthodox Jews are not at all friendly to it. But secular Jews -- the sort who read The New York Times rather than pray -- seem to be fiercely behind it. How does this figure in the equation?
Jun '10
Re: Why Do Jewish Democrats Keep On Loving Barack Obama?
I take it quite personally, this Jewish allegiance to ,not just the Democratic Party, but to the left of the political spectrum. The most serious anti-semitic hatred is to be found first on the left and second amongst blacks and Muslims (often one and the same). Yet the American Jews march merrily arm in arm right up to the oven doors. (I know that is a shocking statement, but as a Jew it is how I feel...sorry if it offends anyone.) It even gets worse, as these same Jews not only pal around with those that hate them, but they spit in the face of the evangelical Christians who truly support them. I certainly understand the historically engrained mistrust Jews have of Christians, but it's about time they, generally speaking, get over it. What's it gonna take to change this idiocy amongst an otherwise highly intelligent group of people. I shudder to think about it.
Feb '11
Re: Why Do Jewish Democrats Keep On Loving Barack Obama?
I read somewhere about a remote village in Russia where the local Jews, in 1941, eagerly awaited the arrival of the German troops. Not a typo. They remembered the "correct" German officers from the previous war, who had been greatly preferable to the local corrupt and anti-Semitic officials, and failed to understand that "German soldier" in 1941 meant something quite different from "German soldier" in 1914. Just as "Democrat" means something very different in 2011 than it meant in 1945.
Jan '11
Re: Why Do Jewish Democrats Keep On Loving Barack Obama?
Not so difficult to understand, I think. One just has to consider the socialist impulse that runs deep and historically long in the Jewish population, here and everywhere else in this world. The Democrat party, comprised as it is of special interests, each grieving for one thing or another, is a natural magnet for socialists.
The really interesting, perhaps unfathomable question, prompted in an earlier post, is how do we Jews reconcile our socialist and capitalist proclivities - in the same person? I think we're born schizophrenics, however well meaning - and successful.
Jun '10
Re: Why Do Jewish Democrats Keep On Loving Barack Obama?
For a lot of urban American Jews, their real religion is art, books, and culture. That's as liberal a "church" as you'll find in America. Belonging to that "church" (art, books, and culture) can be hard work too, but it's a lot more fun. It's not a group that has much respect for someone like Sarah Palin. She'd be a serious heretic.
Jun '10
Re: Why Do Jewish Democrats Keep On Loving Barack Obama?
Excellent. Judith's comments raise an odd issue. Jews, because of their long history as outsiders, are fearful of being accused of dual loyalty, while American Christians of various conservative stripes (Evangelicals, Mormons, and the like) have no problem defending Israel unreservedly and equating American and Israeli interests. I understand it, but can't help but note the irony of it all.
I'm one of those who has a little Israeli flag on my screen saver, and am proud of it. And I like Bibi lots more than Barack.
Jun '11
Re: Why Do Jewish Democrats Keep On Loving Barack Obama?
And also, doesn't America break us all down in its own persistent way? Isn't there in this Nation a broad sweep occurring, one of history's great waves leading hundreds of diverse tribes to a new cultural shore?
The acceleration of the rate of change, the prosperity driven in part by an unabashed devotion to Texnei, to innovation and what is new - aren't these hallmarks of what we are becoming? What ancient tradition or othrodoxy can honestly stand in the path of our new tradition?
Japan is remarkable because of the way they industrialized and modernized with a conscious effort to maintain their sense of being Japanese. Here, we are geographically divorced from our ancient homelands in Europe and around the world and we have no choice but to become what America makes us.
Oct '10
Re: Why Do Jewish Democrats Keep On Loving Barack Obama?
A Victim Mentality:
Jewish Americans seem to have the perpetual victim mentality that strains throughout the Democrat Party DNA. Republicans believe in empowering individuals to persevere, while the Democrat mindset is that everybody is screwed in life unless government rescues them.
I believe it really is that simple.
Edited on Jun 9, 2011 at 3:29pmJun '10
Re: Why Do Jewish Democrats Keep On Loving Barack Obama?
A question for the group: Why is it that, as a group, Jews remain so loyally Democratic, yet some of the most articulate conservatives--Charles Krauthammer, Irving and Bill Kristol, Norman and John Podhoretz, Dennis Prager, Michael Medved, Jennifer Rubin--are observant Jews or of Jewish ancestry? Are they having any luck in getting Jews to rethink their politics?
Oct '10
Re: Why Do Jewish Democrats Keep On Loving Barack Obama?
Judith, thank you very much for your post and your podcast today. Like Professor Rahe it’s seems to me that the American Jewish community is in agreement with many of the policies of the Democrat left as Jennifer Rubin has stated. Does this view support your general point? I was particularly struck by your answer to Peter’s question on as to why you enjoyed living in Israel. It was that no one questioned your religion. As a Roman Catholic who spent over a decade growing up in Lebanon in the 50’s and early 60’s while my father worked for an oil company there, I was repeatedly exposed to the virulent anti-Semitism in the Arab world. I didn’t understand it then, and I don't now. How do we convince the American Jewish community that the Democrat left is attacking not just Israel, but their religion ? The reason that we use the term Judeo-Christian tradition is that Christians and Jews have more in common than we have differences, and that Christianity was built on the foundation of Judaism. What would convince the American Jewish community that they must start voting for conservative candidates?
Feb '11
Re: Why Do Jewish Democrats Keep On Loving Barack Obama?
Jews have traditionally had a great respect for education...usually, this has been a *good* thing. But as education has become more and more about the inculcation of Leftist ideas, and the propagation of dysfunctional modes of thought, it is not so good.
Also, excessive regard for education often tends to lead people to admire, follow, and even worship elegant theoretical systems with little regard for practical experience.
Dec '10
Re: Why Do Jewish Democrats Keep On Loving Barack Obama?
Judith, isn't your 4th paragraph really a description of self-hatred? It strikes me that this sentence...
"When applied to Jews, these positives have been twisted to impute greed, miserliness, selfishness (a disinclination to redistribute income or to spread the public wealth), callous disregard for the less fortunate, clannishness, and so on."
is exactly the narrative told about conservatives today. I had never thought of the "self-hating Jew" as a reaction to the left's contempt for and slander of traditional Judeo-Christian values. Is this a case of Stockholm Syndrome?
As a Christian who is deeply admiring of Judaism and the Jewish people for being our big brothers of ethical monotheism, it is disturbing to me that so many Jews would abandon us to fend for ourselves against the vicious, libelous, ruthless and even murderous Left. It may be understandable given the history of persecution, but it isn't admirable or courageous, is it? As I've heard Dennis Prager say, perhaps quoting someone else, Jews are the messenger who has forgotten his message.
Oct '10
Re: Why Do Jewish Democrats Keep On Loving Barack Obama?
Judith Levy
[W]e have to be more American than the Americans..... ·
And yet, Walter Russell Mead points out a stark difference:
"What Netanyahu demonstrated in Congress was not that he has the backing of the Israel Lobby. It was something much more important and, depending on your viewpoint, more alarming: he has the backing of the American people."
Republicans almost never allude to divided loyalties and cabals (Jews first, Americans second!). Anti-semitism is more emblematic, intellectually and demographically, of the left. Being anti-Israel is, in fact, defensible (which is why it has also become the socially acceptable face of anti-semitism).
Democrats, however, seem far more likely to publicly self-identify as Jews (think Schumer, Weiner ….) than Republicans (think, who?). Is it possible the preponderance of Jews think of themselves collectively and are disposed to centralized decision making? There are certainly compelling historical reasons for that perspective. Urban areas require collective solutions simply to function. The Democratic party is a frankly demographic coalition, in contrast to the ideological coalition on the right.
Would Jews thus seem natural Democrats? Doesn't being "more American than the Americans" here really look closer to being more Democrat than the Democrats?
Re: Why Do Jewish Democrats Keep On Loving Barack Obama?
Judith -- terrific post. Very helpful in explaining this apparent (and frustrating) paradox. But I also wonder how much of this is due less to historical associations and/or insecurities than to the simple fact that Jews in the U.S. are disproportionately represented among the "elite" professions -- medicine, law, journalism, academia, and so on. Their affiinity to "elite status" may well trump their affinity to "Judaism/Israel" -- and American "elites" are almost tribally loyal to Barack Obama (Columbia/Harvard), whom they see as "one of us," as opposed to the GOP of W, Palin, and all the other mud-dwellers. It strikes me as not at all coincidental that over the past 20 or 30 years overt support of Israel among the left-leaing "elites" has declined at almost exactly the same rate that it has increased among the evangelical right.
Apr '11
Re: Why Do Jewish Democrats Keep On Loving Barack Obama?
This is a very interesting and disturbing question for the few conservative jews out there,myself included.I think that all of the points made by Judith apply and are accurate and on the mark.That said,I have come to the conclusion that it really boils down to a liberal vs conservative mindset and world view and the vast majority of jews are liberals.Imagine for a moment the views of Cindy Sheehan regarding israel,she is hostile to Israel because she shares the left wing view of the world.Now go read the various editorials and op-eds at the Israeli left wing newspaper Haraatz,It is filled with nothing but far left jews who sound exactly as Sheehan does.They suggest that everything is Israels fault and if only Israel would stop being so strident everything would be peachy keen.
I can usually tell a persons political persuasion from simply hearing how they speak about Israel and the middle east situation in general.Those who blame Israel for everything and bend over backwards to explain away the behavior of the muslim and arab world also blame America for all the ills in the world.
Re: Why Do Jewish Democrats Keep On Loving Barack Obama?
Fascinating. I've been reading Rodney Stark's "God's Battalions" and was surprised to learn of a similar episode to the one you describe in which the Jews welcomed invading Muslim forces into the Holy Land in the late 630's. This, as we know, turned out to be a bad decision on their part, as they were forced to surrender Jerusalem to the caliph Umar in 638.
Re: Why Do Jewish Democrats Keep On Loving Barack Obama?
I'd note that Jennifer Rubin had some funny, sarcastic, yet fairly incisive remarks on the topic in her podcast with Mickey Kaus. Worth seeking out. As is Norman Podhoretz's book-length treatment of the question, Why Are Jews Liberals?
As a group, Jews were solid Republicans from the 1860s until about 1920, when Harding was the last Republican who managed to win a (43%) plurality of the Jewish vote. The Democrat too 19%, and Eugene V. Debs took 38%. Eastern European immigrants entered into politics big-time around then, and they had a lot of socialists in their number.
Why it's persisted is another question. Only Ike has even pulled 40% of the Jewish vote since. (Carter temporarily drove many to Reagan and Anderson in 1980.) The only two reliably Republican segments of the Jewish community are the Orthodox and immigrants from the Soviet Union (the latter the mirror image of the socialists who fled Czarist Russia). About a third of Jews under 40 vote Republican—the largest such age cohort—but you're still not talking a lot.
Don't hold your breath, kids. The Tribe (God preserve them), like their Lord, moves in mysterious ways. : )