Look at bigger picture

Editorial

At the Conservative Political Action Committee meeting in Washington, D.C., last weekend, former Texas congressman Ron Paul topped the poll as delegates’ favorite candidate for the Republican presidential nomination in 2012.

The poll was unscientific and doesn’t mean much – which is a good thing. Paul, who ran for the Republican nomination last time around, hopes to end American support of Israel, pull troops out of Iraq and essentially shut America’s curtains to the world. While some of Paul’s supporters herald from the extremes commonly associated with antisemitic conspiracies, his foreign policy is not specific to the Jewish state, so much as it is part of a more generalized policy of American non-intervention.

The straw poll is part of a worrisome trend. As the New York Times reported recently, the Tea Party movement sweeping across the United States is drawing adherents from crevasses of the political (and literal) wilderness. The movement, an ad hoc force that emerged in opposition to President Barack Obama’s health-care proposals, is morphing into a catch-all of extremism. Among the backbone of the movement, in some regions, are anti-immigrant activists, conspiracy theorists and vigilante militias. Whether the party will unite or split the American right is unclear, but they could have a detrimental impact on the pro-Israel consensus in the U.S. mainstream, at the least.

In Canada, meanwhile, a kooky phenomenon of our own is emerging, with the two major parties fighting for Jewish support, both with fear as a component.

Liberal MP Irwin Cotler has been warning that the Conservative government’s ostentatious support for Israel may create a wedge issue. Now, Winnipeg Liberal MP Anita Neville, the co-chair of Liberal Parliamentarians for Israel, is warning that the Harper government’s cheerleading for Israel could lead to an antisemitic backlash and that the Conservatives are setting the Jewish community up against others by defunding several groups, some of which are anti-Israel.

For their part, the Conservatives are billing themselves as the only party that is genuinely concerned about Israel and Jewish safety.

It is hard being a minority – too much or too little “official” attention can prove harmful. Balance is required. Blind support of just one political party, just one minority group or just one democracy is not an appropriate objective.

The Jewish community and the Canadian government (whichever party is in power) must not only be committed to fighting against antisemitism and in favor of Israel, but against racism of any kind and for democratic ideals everywhere.

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