Can a Good Jew Who Loves Israel Support Obama?

I hope so because I am a Jew who loves Israel and supports Obama.

I have continued to receive a number of emails in recent days from Jewish friends and they have common theme. They are all full of fear and concern what a Barack Obama presidency would mean for Israel. There is another common thread. None of the fears or concerns are based on anything Obama has ever said or done. It is all about things that were said or done by his former pastor, his wife, casual acquainances and neighbors along with unsolicited endorsements he has received from people he never met.

That's why I was thrilled when my son Sam sent me a link to a recent interview Obama did on the subject of Israel. Here's the link:

http://jeffreygoldberg.theatlantic.com/archives/2008/05/obama_on_zionism_and_hamas.php

I'm afraid we have to get used to these smear and guilt by association campaign tactics. A McCain aide was recently quoted as saying that we should get ready for "Swift Boat times five."

The result of the special election in Mississippi on Tuesday (see my last post) could have something to do with the Republican panic.

The Democrats won yet another seat (three out of three now) in a special election to fill a formerly Republican seat in a district that Bush won by 24 percentage points in 2004. Most people are just coming to realize just how damaged the Republican brand is and how hard it is going to be for any Republican to win in November. While my friend Dennis Prager and others on the Right blame this on unfair media treatment and attacks from the Left, the fact is that Republicans themselves are disgusted with the way their own party has handled things over the last eight years and they're turning on their own. There aren't enough Lefties or Democrats in the 1st Congressional district of Mississippi to swing that election. No Democrat should ever win that district--but one did.

Here's the link to the New York Times article today about that race:

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/15/us/politics/15repubs.html?th&emc=th

The news media has a strong vested interest in making the presidential race seem close and exciting for as long as possible--just as it had an interest in making the Clinton-Obama race seem alive for two months after it was over. My guess is that it won't be long before it becomes clear that McCain has no chance although the cable networks will try to make it seem close for as long as they can. They've got to make a living too.