Democrats are in denial when they claim that Israel’s perception within the party is solid. Its image has ebbed among Democrats and other Americans, primarily on the liberal side, and it is difficult to determine how much.
Israel’s image can be revitalized, though the conditions for it will not be fully in place until Jan. 20, 2021 – if Democrats retake the White House and control of Congress. Democrats will be in a position to coax or pressure Israel – whichever strategy is needed – to reconsider its policies and even transform its government’s balance of power.
Among necessary steps, a Democratic administration can influence the Knesset, Israel’s parliament, to end settlement expansion in the West Bank and re-examine its military response to attacks from Gaza. Israel might also permit its citizens who live in foreign countries to vote by absentee ballot, a move that could dilute conservative power in their home nation.
It stands to reason that more Americans, including those in the Jewish community, have soured on Israel because of its real or perceived policies and practices and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s embrace of President Trump. Much of that can be reversed.
Some Democrats are defensive when criticized about possible anti-Semitism, and Republicans move ever closer to accusing Democrats of importing ovens from the Nazi death camps. The Democrats must contend with concerns about anti-Semitism, while Jewish issues are nowhere near the severe levels in the party that Republicans would have us believe.
Ron Lauder, president of the World Jewish Congress, triggered a furor in mid-June when he warned of an “unsettling” drift from support for Israel among Democratic candidates, according to the website Jewish Insider. “We’ve all seen the unsettling change in support for Israel among Democratic presidential candidates,” Lauder said during a conference in Jerusalem. “Today polls show us that only 24 percent of Democrats side with Israel.
“Most of the presidential candidates in the Democratic Party have distanced themselves from Israel because they see the base of the party moving away from the Jewish state,” he continued.
Among Lauder’s detractors, Mark Mellman, president and CEO of the Democratic Majority for Israel, said as quoted by Jewish Insider, “The vast majority of the 280 Democrats serving in the House and Senate and the 23 Democratic governors have long pro-Israel records. They support a strong U.S.-Israel alliance, Israel’s right to defend itself, U.S. aid to Israel and a lasting peace through a two-state solution negotiated by Israelis and Palestinians.”
Halie Soifer, executive director of the Jewish Democratic Council of America, added, “There’s no evidence to support the claims that Democratic support for Israel has diminished in any way. We’ve seen no diminishing of this support and this includes even among the candidates.”
No evidence?
On the second day of the Democratic convention in September 2016, convention chairman Antonio Villaraigosa called the same voice vote three times before he announced that the party platform would be amended to include the word “God” and name Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, according to ABC News.
The vote required a two-thirds majority to pass, yet the first two votes were tied between “ays” and “nos, and the third time it was still too difficult to determine who even had the majority. Villaraigosa announced “the ays have it,” and loud boos broke out throughout the half-empty arena in Philadelphia.
Republicans attacked Democrats for removing Jerusalem and God from their platform the day before. An Obama campaign official told ABC that President Obama personally requested that “God” be inserted back into the platform.
The amendment likewise restored the 2008 language recognizing Jerusalem as Israel’s capital. The new provision stated, “Jerusalem is and will remain the capital of Israel. The parties have agreed that Jerusalem is a matter for final status negotiations. It should remain an undivided city accessible to people of all faiths.”
White House Press Secretary Jay Carney said at the time that this “is exactly the same position that presidents and administrations have held since 1967.”
I watched that scene on television. While I had to look up the details the other day, I do remember Villaraigosa calling the vote and then looking baffled when many of the delegates opposed the amendment. After the third try, he appeared unsure of what to do before he declared the amendment was approved.
The episode frightened me. I know there are many liberals who are harshly critical of Israel, but to witness so many delegates deny that Jerusalem is the capital was chilling. Two years later, two Democrats were elected to the House of Representatives where they brazenly offended Jews. At least three others have come close to their level of insensitivity about Jews and Israel. Witness Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez’s “concentration camps” description of facilities for migrant children.
These attitudes could spread to the levels experienced in Britain’s Labour Party, but I can see how this situation can revert to a more supportive environment for Israel and American Jews. Reps. Rashida Tlaib and Ilhan Omar might be ousted in their respective primaries next year, and most presidential candidates have made clear their support for Israel while still criticizing our Middle East ally.
If a Democrat is elected president, s/he will automatically enter the White House with a reservoir of public trust and goodwill simply because Trump will no longer be there. A Democratic president will almost certainly prod Israel to cease and desist from settlement expansion and forget the idea about annexation, along with other issues. No matter how conservative the government, I would bet that Israel will make concessions to any president whose name is not Trump.
The Knesset could even become more moderate in the coming 18 months and walk back some steps without need of persuasion by a president. Doubtful, though.
Another source of change which could alter the balance of power would involve absentee ballots. Currently, only Israeli government employees who serve in foreign countries can vote by absentee ballots. All other expatriates must fly to Israel to vote on election day. According to media reports, the Israeli public has generally opposed the use of absentee ballots because expats are considered traitors to the Zionist cause.
However, even Netanyahu has urged expanding absentee ballot use in recent years; it would help his surviving brother, Iddo, a writer and radiologist who lives in western New York state. How expats will vote is unclear, but more and more of them have moved to California and New York, states that have only grown more liberal and democratic. One observer quoted in media reports suggested that this would allow for a switch of no more than two Knesset seats, which could be sufficient for a moderate or liberal coalition to take control.
Israel’s shortcomings are at least as much a matter of perception as reality. The Palestinians are far worse. If Israel takes steps that alter its image for the better, the Arabs might well run out of excuses to claim victimhood.
Republished from San Diego Jewish World.