In a webcast with Jewish groups Friday, President Obama dodged concerns that the campaign to defend his nuclear deal with Iran is flirting with anti-Semitic stereotypes.
Citing “appalling” attacks by fellow Jews against Rep. Jerrold Nadler, a New York Democrat who came out in favor of the deal a week ago, Obama challenged the idea that supporters had engaged in equivalent rhetoric, saying the attack on Nadler “is the kind of stuff that people have to be deeply concerned about.”
He also said everyone should keep in mind that “we’re all pro-Israel.”
But he did not condemn, nor did he mention, that Sen. Chuck Schumer also has been subjected to vitriolic attacks since he came out Aug. 7 against the deal. Among those who fired back at Schumer, also a Jewish Democrat from New York, were former top Obama administration advisers Dan Pfeiffer, Jon Favreau and Tommy Vietor, who suggested that Democrats should replace him as their incoming Senate leader before next year.
The president also did not address his own statements, and those by other top administration officials, that have raised concern that the White House and its allies are singling out Jewish and pro-Israeli interests for criticism, despite a larger universe of lobbying interests on both sides of the deal who may have other reasons for their positions. Obama said only that “those who support the deal, I think — certainly my administration and me — have tried to stay focused on what we think are the logical conclusions and facts based on the nature of the deal and what alternatives are available.”
The attacks on Nadler came largely from Orthodox Jewish leaders opposed to the deal, including Democratic New York State Assemblyman Dov Hikind, who not only refused to apologize but said in a Facebook post that: “Our community has the right to express outrage over the decisions of our elected representatives.”
Hikind also blamed Obama for setting the tone of the debate “with nefarious characterizations coming from the administration and various surrogates that depict opposition to the agreement in overt anti-Semitic tones,” echoing concerns from other critics that the language being used by supporters of the deal plays into the historic trope of Jews as people who are small in number and use their wealth to influence policy in nefarious ways.
The tone of the rhetoric has become so heated that three Jewish Democratic House members from New York who oppose the deal — Eliot Engel, Steve Israel and Nita Lowey — issued a joint statement Tuesday calling on both sides to dial it back.
“No matter where you stand on the Iran deal, comparisons to the Holocaust, the darkest chapter in human history, questioning the credentials of long-standing advocates for Israel and accusations of dual loyalty are inappropriate,” they said.
“We call upon those concerned about the consequences of the upcoming vote to refrain from attacks and focus on the substance of the agreement. Vitriolic rhetoric and threats distract from the thoughtful debate this important issue deserves and, in some cases, unacceptably perpetuate hate.”
