[yshavurah] Fw: Professor Dershowitz on Israel and this election
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- Date: Thu, 28 Oct 2004 07:02:07 -0400
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Subject: Professor Dershowitz on Israel and this election
This is said so well, I think everyone should read this before voting!
Rebecca
Subject: A Message from Professor Alan Dershowitz
A Message to the American Jewish Community from Professor Alan Dershowitz:
There are American Jews who have said recently that although they
support John Kerry's positions on every major domestic issue - - from
the Supreme Court to women's rights to gay rights - - they plan to
vote for President Bush because they believe Bush would be better for
Israel.
Respectfully, I believe they are wrong for two reasons.
First, I know personally how strongly John Kerry feels about a safe
and secure Israel. I remember vividly when John went to Israel with
our dear mutual friend, the late Lenny Zakim, the New England director
of the ADL. On his return, that's all John could talk about - - his
admiration for Israel's combination of strength and determination to
make peace. He has a perfect pro-Israel voting record in the Senate
and I have no doubt that, as president, John Kerry's unwavering
commitment to Israel will continue.
President Bush, though well intentioned on Israel, has hurt the Jewish
nation's position in the world. The actions of the United States in
Iraq, especially since President Bush prematurely declared "mission
accomplished", have been disastrous for Israel. The failures in Iraq
have weakened the influence of the United States in the Middle East
and have made it much more difficult for us to thwart Iran's
determination to develop nuclear weapons aimed at Israeli population
centers. The Iranian mullahs know that Americans could not stomach
another military action in Iran while the occupation of Iraq
continues. This reality, confirmed by President Bush during the first
debate, has emboldened them to speed up their nuclear program - - a
program that poses the greatest existential threat to Israel, the
Jewish people and ultimately America, since an Iranian nuclear program
could result in terrorists with dirty bombs. The current Bush policy
with regard to Iraq has weakened America's war against terror by
diverting military and other resources to a quagmire that is only
getting worse.
The second reason is that pro-Israel votes should not turn an American
presidential election into a referendum on Israel. Our goal must be
to keep support for Israel a bipartisan issue - - and in this we have
succeeded. Pro-Israel voters are free in this election to vote based
on other important issues, such as women's rights, separation of
church and state and the Supreme Court.
These issues actually coalesce in practice. If President Bush is
reelected, he will have as many as four Supreme Court vacancies in his
first year: and he has told us exactly who he intends to fill them
with: clones of his two favorite justices - - Scalia and Thomas. A
Bush Supreme Court will put at risk a woman's right to choose
abortion. Equally important it will lower the wall of separation
between church and state and increase the power of the religious
right. Although the religious right has been very supportive of
Israel - - especially in comparison with the Presbyterian and
Episcopal branches of Protestantism - - their agenda for the American
future poses considerable danger to the Jewish future in America.
They envision a Christian state with Christian schools and a Christian
Supreme court.
Listen to the Texas Republican Party platform which "affirms that the
United States is a Christian nation" and refers to the "myth of the
separation of church and state."
Listen to Lou Sheldon, the founder of the "Traditional Values Coalition":
"We were here firstS.We are the keepers of what is right and what is wrong."
And listen to Ralph Reed, the director of the Christian Coalition:
"What Christians have to do is to take back the countryS.I honestly
believe that in my lifetime we will see a country once again governed
by ChristiansSand Christian values."
And to Jerry Falwell:
"I hope to see the day when as in the early days of our country, we
won't have any public schools. The churches will have taken them over
again and Christians will be running themS.We must never allow our
children to forget that this is a Christian nation. We must take back
what is rightfully ours."
And to Pat Robertson:
"The Constitution of the United StatesSis a marvelous document for
self-government by Christian people. But the minute you turn the
document into the hands of non-Christian people and atheist people,
they can use it to destroy the very foundation of our society. And
that's what's been happening S.If Christian people work together, they
can succeedSin winning back control of the institutions that have been
taken from them over the past 70 years."
The Bush Administration supports the lowering of the wall of
separation. Its prayer breakfasts, its faith-based programs, its
Ashcroft Justice Department, and its evangelical rhetoric are all
music to the ears of the proselytizing Religious Right. Remember
President Bush's inauguration, which was dedicated to "our savior
Jesus Christ" and seemed more like a Christian prayer service than a
national civic event?
A Kerry-Edwards Administration would keep the wall high. Senator
Edwards has warned that "faith should not be used to divide us." Jews
especially have an important stake in the separation of church and
state. We are first class citizens of this great nation precisely
because no religious tests may be required for holding office and
because the state may not favor one religion over another or religion
over non-religion. We must preserve that neutrality for the good of
America, the good of Jews and the good of the world.
Professor Alan M. Dershowitz is Felix Frankfurter Professor of Law at
Harvard Law School.
Note: Kerry has 100% rating on Israel issues by AIPAC, the American
Israel Public Action Committee.
Also note: In a recent report, the Jaffee Center for Strategic
Studies, based at Tel Aviv University wrote: "During the past year
Iraq has become a major distraction from the global war on terrorism.
Iraq has now become a convenient arena for jihad, which has helped Al
Qaeda to recover from the set back it suffered as a result of the war
in Afghanistan. With the growing phenomenon of suicide bombing, the
U.S. presence in Iraq now demands more and more assets that might have
otherwise been deployed against various dimensions of the global
terrorist threat."
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