I also that many people pick their political opinions, consciously or otherwise, in order to improve their status among their friends and professional associates. Also, the very nature of a person’s work can have an influence on their thought processes and hence their politics. Five years spent writing ad copy is likely to give you very different ways of thinking than five years repairing cars.

I also wonder if it is not a matter of nouveau riche class snobbery: that since WWII, Jewish Americans have reached the highest levels of American society; and this upward movement was extremely rapid, such that most Jews personally remember grandparents who – even though hardworking and admirable – have become a social embarrassment to their descendants {who are now members of the country clubs, or academic nomenklatura.)

It is true that people tend to vote the way their parents did, and Jewish Americans have been strongly Democratic since FDR; however, anti-semitism is rife among parts of that coalition, especially among African Americans, as well as the university intelligentsia.

But my impression is that among many Jewish Americans, to vote Republican would be to join up with what they think is the very lower class, ignorant evangelicals Christians.

What do you think?

Because he’d be lying through his teeth.

Still, I suppose he should go for it. Many Jews seem to be in deep denial as far as the Democrats are concerned – they’d probably fall for it.

The rumor is that McCain was a rabbi is a previous life, thus conquering not only the Jewish vote but the re-incarnation vote

Fla has a lock on both.

No truer words were ever said. A large number of American Jews indulge in self-hatred. Something is definitely wrong—and must be dealt with as soon as possible. It simply cannot be ignored. We may be living in a era similar to the Weimar Republic of 1930. It is getting very late. Time is running out.

Roger, you want a good example? Cynthia McKinney. Those of you who aren’t from Georgia probably don’t know that her post-9/11 antics were quite typical of her.

McKinney’s district includes huge African American communities in DeKalb county. It also includes huge Jewish communities, including the area around Emory University.

The last serious Republican challenge to McKinney was in 1996. Newt Gingrich and other GOP leaders believed that if any republican could win in that district, it was John Mitnick. During the campaign, McKinney’s father, Billy, engaged in openly antisemitic rhetoric. It was never widely reported in the press, but in the final days, I heard from people I trust that McKinney’s campaign volunteers were going door to door rallying people to “stop the Jew”.

McKinney won by a landslide. Most jewish voters in her district voted for her or stayed home. The Republicans never tried to seriously oppose her again– even after a string of vicious smears about 9/11, she was unseated in the democratic primary and was not challenged by a major republican. Billy McKinney’s explanation for her defeat? “J-E-W-S”. Of course, next election she came back, largely because many democrats ran vanity campaigns and left the seat open for her.

McKinney is openly, proudly antisemitic. She’s careful about what she gets quoted on, but it’s impossible to ignore the evidence. While Obama has surrounded himself with unsavory advisors, he himself has never said anything even questionable that I’ve heard. His reputation in Chicago among jews I know (and who knew him) is very good, too.

There is a lesson here for Obama. While increasing numbers of Jews are conservative, and while Jews are well-represented among conservative leaders, Jews as a demographic are still overwhelmingly liberal, even in the face of a proven, openly antisemitic democrat. Even if Obama IS secretly antisemitic, even if his rhetoric became antisemitic, even if far more damaging information cames out, Jews would still vote for him in droves. If Obama was bad enough, some MIGHT sit out, and you might see a reduction in volunteer work and fundraising, but I think the experience in Georgia should put any democratic fears to rest.

The irony is that Obama stands to lose more votes from non-jews who are outraged by antisemitism than he is from the jewish community itself.

If Obama loses, we can blame the “Israel Lobby.”

What is known in certain circles as a “win-win” situation.