THIS JUST IN: A Jew in 2004? Why is Joe Lieberman behind in the polls?
I don't know that I would lay Lieberman's bleak chances to anti-Semitism, but that reality certainly cannot be ignored. Joe is what he is, and he has never made any attempts to hide his faith or his value system, both of which from all appearances are genuine.
Joe Lieberman should be the hands-down front-runner for President among Democrats. He came within a chad's width of being elected Vice President and is better known than any of his eight rivals. But polls show that the Connecticut Senator is behind in such key states as Iowa and New Hampshire, and political insiders don't give him much chance of winning the nomination. There are several reasons for this, but one big one is rarely discussed in public: Lieberman is a Jew.
I hate to write those words. I'm Jewish and--I admit it--I like Lieberman. He's wry and wise in the right proportions and willing to defy his party on matters of principle. He's a good man. But he is also a member of a tiny and long-scorned minority. Plenty of people won't vote for him simply because of his religion, whether they admit it or not. And, I'm ashamed to say, lots of Jews are reluctant to back him as well. After suffering years of discrimination, they fear that having too prominent a Jew on the national scene could spark an outbreak of anti-Semitism.
Most Americans probably won't come right out and say that they won't vote for Lieberman because he is a Jew. There are plenty of other reasons to dislike him if you are so inclined. Besides, most Americans don't want to be stamped as religious bigots. The reality, though, is that Lieberman's Jewishness is the 800-pound gorilla in his campaign headquarters. No one wants to admit that it is there, but there it is.
Lieberman's challenge, then, would seem to be to convince voters that he is a viable candidate based on the issues. If you give people enough reason to vote for you, in most cases they will overlook your religious affiliation. After all, JFK's Catholicism was a campaign issue in 1960- until he figured out a way to convince Americans to see him as just a man with a vision. Lieberman, while certainly no JFK, certainly has the presence and ideas to make this scenario a possibility.
Lieberman has weaknesses that go beyond religion. He's a pro-business moderate in a party that appears to want a populist as its standard-bearer. What's more, the type of Democratic activists who tend to vote in primaries hated the war with Iraq that Lieberman so stoutly defended.
Then again, Americans' open-mindedness has been underestimated before. John F. Kennedy was supposed to lose the presidential election in 1960 because he was Catholic. Instead he broke a religious barrier. The Democratic field for President this year is actually chock full of Jewishness. Kerry recently revealed that his paternal grandparents were Austrian Jews who converted to Catholicism. Former Governor Howard Dean of Vermont has spoken at length about his Jewish wife, Judy, and his two Jewish-raised children. And if Congress is a guide, Jews are more than welcome. Capitol Hill has a record number of Jewish lawmakers: 11 in the Senate and 24 in the House.
But whether a Jew can reach the White House is very much in question.
Whoa...is there an echo in here?? IF Lieberman can replicate JFK's legacy in making people forget his religious affiliation, things will be looking up. Like any candidate, though, Lieberman will have other issues. He leans a bit more to the right in a party that desperately wants to recapture it's Liberal roots without having to use the "L" word. A bit conflicted? You bet, and that certainly isn't going to work in Lieberman's favor.
One good thing in Lieberman's favor is the lack of depth and breadth in the current Democratic candidates. It's still relatively early, and there are miles to go before anyone runs out of money. Run, Joe, run....
