Issue link: https://viewer.e-digitaledition.com/i/757002
A number of pro- Israel activists and Jewish commu- nity figures are expressing concern that Minnesota's U.S. Rep. Keith Ellison would turn the Democratic Party away from Israel if he is elected Democratic National Committee (DNC) chairman. The election of Ellison "would bode badly for Jews," longtime Democratic consul- tant Dr. Hank Sheinkopf told JNS. org. "His positions on Israel fit the pattern, noted by recent research, of identified liberal anti-Israel bias and the movement of Democrats away from Israel." Ellison's controversial statements and actions date back to the 1990s, when he served as a local spokesman in Minnesota for Louis Farrakhan's Nation of Islam movement. Ellison raised eyebrows when he publicly claimed in 1995 that Farrakhan "is not an anti-Semite." Since his election to the U.S. House of Representatives in 2007, Ellison has emerged as one of the most vocal congressional supporters of the Palestinian cause. He has organized letters urging more U.S. pressure on Israel, voted against funding Israel's Iron Dome anti-missile system and spoken at fundraising events for the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), a hardline anti- Israel group. While visiting Hebron this past summer, Ellison tweeted a photograph of a placard accusing Israel of "apartheid." Rabbi Menachem Genack of Englewood, N.J., a prominent Jewish supporter of Hillary Clinton's presi- dential campaign, said he would be "disappointed" if Ellison is chosen as chairman of the Democratic National Committee because that would "accelerate the process" of pulling the Democratic Party away from its tra- ditional pro-Israel positions. Genack told JNS.org that he will be speak- ing to his colleagues in the party to explain his "concerns about Ellison's views on Israel." Jewish senators Charles Schumer of New York and Bernie Sanders of Vermont have endorsed Ellison to head the DNC. New York State Assemblyman Dov Hikind, a Democrat who represents a heavily Jewish district in Brooklyn, however, strongly criticized the deci- sion by Schumer to endorse Ellison. In an interview with JNS.org, Hikind, asked, "Why is Schumer in such a rush to support a candidate who is so unfriendly to Israel?" Hikind said Ellison "is the most radical candidate imaginable, some- one who represents the extreme left wing of the party, which is why he's being promoted by Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren and J Street — in other words, Ellison is being backed by all the wrong people if you care about Israel." The assemblyman noted that Ellison has occasionally claimed to be a friend of Israel, "but if Israel has to depend on support from the Ellisons of the world, it would be in serious trouble." Ellison's office did not return a request for comment from JNS.org. The only other declared candidate so far for the chairmanship of the DNC is former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean. A date for the election has not yet been set. According to party rules, it must take place prior to March 31. To win, a candidate needs the votes of a majority of the 447 members of the DNC. About one-fourth of the members are the chairs or vice chairs of state branches of the Democratic Party. * viewpoints » S e n d l e t t e r s t o : l e t t e r s @ t h e j e w i s h n e w s . c o m 8 December 1 • 2016 J ewish organizations who had been at the forefront of anti- Semitism allegations against Stephen K. Bannon, President-elect Donald Trump's newly named chief strategist and special counselor, soft- ened their stance Nov. 17. Going on the offensive against Bannon, the former executive chairman of Breitbart News, Anti- Defamation League (ADL) CEO Jonathan Greenblatt previously said it is "a sad day when a man who presided over the premier website of the 'alt-right' — a loose-knit group of white nationalists and unabashed anti-Semites and racists — is slated to be a senior staff member in the 'people's house.'" But on Nov. 17, the ADL issued a new backgrounder on Bannon that states, "We are not aware of any anti- Semitic statements made by Bannon. In fact, Jewish employees of Breitbart have challenged the characteriza- tions of him and defended him from charges of anti-Semitism." Nevertheless, the ADL back- grounder continued to target Bannon by association, calling him the "chief curator for the alt-right. Under his stewardship, Breitbart has emerged as the leading source for the extreme views of a vocal minority who peddle bigotry and promote hate." The ADL, the National Council of Jewish Women (NCJW) and other Jewish groups opposed Bannon's appointment, charging him with anti-Semitism based on a claim by Bannon's ex-wife in divorce papers that the incoming White House offi- cial didn't want to send his children to a school with Jewish kids — a state- ment Bannon denies making. Jewish groups also cited alleged anti-Semitic overtones in a controversial Breitbart. com headline for a story written ear- lier this year by David Horowitz, the Jewish founder of the conservative- leaning David Horowitz Freedom Center foundation. Nancy Kaufman, NCJW's CEO, told JNS.org that her organization initially called out Bannon based on "a great deal of research on Breitbart" and information from the ADL, which proceeded to back down from the anti-Semitism charge. Kaufman said, "We know of the ties to the white nationalist movement. They've been well-documented, and we're very aware of the comments that have been made by Mr. Bannon that promote xenophobia, racism and homophobia. [Breitbart is] a platform for the alt-right. [Bannon] has called it that." Yet Kaufman told JNS.org that fol- lowing the ADL's clarification, she "will be hesitant to use the word anti- Semite going forward" when com- menting on Bannon … "but I will use the other words to describe him." Matt Brooks, the Republican Jewish Coalition's executive director, said, "The people who have worked with Bannon … said there's absolutely not an inch of an anti-Semitic bone in Steve Bannon's body." "We know that Breitbart has been unabashedly pro-Israel in their writings," Brooks said. "They have been against the Iran deal … under Bannon's leadership, Breitbart opened a Jerusalem office … There's a lot of stuff out there … we really need to take a step back and see how this issue works out." Pro-Israel advocate Alan Dershowitz said he "hasn't seen any evidence of personal anti-Semitism on the part of Bannon. "I don't think anybody should be called or accused of being anti-Semit- ic unless the evidence is overwhelm- ing." * Stephen Bannon Spotlight On New Leadership Democrat And Republican Scrutinized By Jewish Critics Karen McDonough | JNS.org Detractors Soften Stance On Bannon Rafael Medoff | JNS.org U.S. Rep. Keith Ellison Ellison's Views On Israel Questioned