Obama and the Jews by Thomas Freidman

[Kber]

Pssst. Have you heard? I have. I heard that Barack Obama once said there has to be “an end” to the Israeli “occupation” of the West Bank “that began in 1967.” Yikes!

Pssst. Have you heard? I have. I heard that Barack Obama said that not only must Israel be secure, but that any peace agreement “must establish Palestine as a homeland for the Palestinian people.” Yikes!

Pssst. Have you heard? I have. I heard that Barack Obama once said “the establishment of the state of Palestine is long overdue. The Palestinian people deserve it.” Yikes! Yikes! Yikes!

Those are the kind of rumors one can hear circulating among American Jews these days about whether Barack Obama harbors secret pro-Palestinian leanings. I confess: All of the above phrases are accurate. I did not make them up.

There’s just one thing: None of them were uttered by Barack Obama. They are all direct quotes from President George W. Bush in the last two years. Mr. Bush, long hailed as a true friend of Israel, said all those things.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/18/opinion/18friedman.html?ref=opinion

[AtomicKitten]

1. The truth needs to be pushed aggressively in this election.

there will be many attempts to muddy the waters

[Kber]

3. I have family in Israel and count myself as a supporter of Israel's

right to exist peacefully. I personally think Bush has been HORRIBLE for Israel, and, for what it's worth, my cousins agree.

They have fought for peace and reconciliation for years and feel like Bush has undermined decades of progress.

If Obama can offer a way to bring everyone to the table, then I say God Bless HIm - however he does it!

[AtomicKitten]

6. Obama: "Let's go change the world."

I believe. :D

[Bullet1987]

2. Uh...everything he said is true. Peace talks will never amount to anything

unless Palestine is given a fair shake. That is TRUTH! All of this knee-jerk shit about Israel is right-wing propaganda at its finest.

[oberliner]

13. Are you saying that everything Bush said is true?

Because Obama did not say those things, Bush did.

[DerekJ]

4. Gallup:

http://www.gallup.com/poll/107059/Obama-Beats-McCain-Among-Jewish-Voters.aspx

[Kber]

5. Seems about right to me.

Most of my Jewish family supported Hillary (most - not all). Every single one of them has committed enthusiastically to voting for Obama in November, though.

I have one cousin who voted for Bush twice who will probably vote for McCain. There's always one, I suppose.

[VotesForWomen]

7. jewish people *normally* lean dem, but with O as the nom, maybe not as much. nt

[NewHampshireDem]

8. Link?

Or is this just more stuff pulled from you know where?

[DerekJ]

10. And you know more than Gallup because?!!!

[Arugula Latte]

11. They tend to be more highly educated than the population as a whole.

That bodes well for them supporting Obama.

[EFerrari]

9. Why is America just now committed to a two state solution when

that is what partition called for in the first place?

Whatever.

[BlooInBloo]

12. Thomas "Always Wrong" Friedman. meh.