In the wake of recent 2020 primary election results, there is an unexpected silver lining for Jewish Americans: Sen. Bernie Sanders will almost certainly not be the Democratic presidential nominee.
One would think that for the Jewish community, having a Jewish nominee would have been an achievement to be celebrated instead of a possibility to fear, but sadly, no. Due to both the Vermont independent’s radical beliefs and policy positions, as well as his propensity for surrounding himself with suspect characters, the prospect of a Sanders presidency was concerning indeed for many Jewish Americans like me.
Sanders often touts his trip to Israel to live on a kibbutz when he discusses the America-Israel relationship. But there is an important point lost on many Sanders supporters: He wasn’t spending time in the Jewish state learning about or promoting Judaism or Zionism.
Writing for the Hudson Institute, Ron Radosh explained:
“I knew members of Hashomer Hatzair in the same period that Bernie worked on their kibbutz. They would always urge me to read Borochov’s books. Although he passed away in 1917, too early to see the horrendous results of the Bolshevik Revolution, Borochov’s followers argued that he had proved that “socialist Zionism” had to be Marxist-Leninist.
“Their only criticism of the official Israeli Communist Party was its refusal to see that Stalin was wrong to argue that Jews did not need their own nation and that they instead should work within their own countries to foment a communist revolution. (If you want to know more about Borochov, Wikipedia accurately summarizes his views.)”
Things aren’t any better in the present day either. Sanders has consistently surrounded himself with surrogates who are clear about their position not just on the Jewish state but on Jewish people as well — and it’s not pretty.
Writing for Commentary in the most definitive piece on Sanders’s surrogate problems, Noah Rothman explained:
“Amid the failed Democratic effort to condemn Omar, Sanders’s foreign-policy adviser, Matt Duss, attacked the maneuver as one purely designed to ‘police criticism of Israel.’ It is worth recalling that the remark Duss considers scrutiny of Israel was Omar’s claim that pro-Israel lawmakers exhibit an ‘allegiance to a foreign country.'”
Rothman also highlights how Sanders appointed Faiz Shakir, whose work includes a history of anti-Semitic statements, as his campaign manager. He likewise reminds us that one of Sanders’s most prominent allies, Rep. Rashida Tlaib, has repeatedly crossed the line from criticism of Israel to open anti-Semitism. As I’ve previously written, the Michigan Democrat has even spread “blood libel” against Jews.
Despite the clear delegate count and momentum in Joe Biden’s favor, Sanders refuses to back down — and for (somewhat) good reason. He has a critical mass of support behind him in the liberal wing of the Democratic Party. This wing is all too comfortable with the company Sanders has been keeping and, more disturbingly, likely shares the same views.
So thankfully, Biden’s surge represents a step back from the abyss.
The repudiation of Sanders and his policies may save the Democratic Party from becoming rife with anti-Semitism as the Labour Party has in the United Kingdom under Jeremy Corbyn. While Jewish Americans may not be 100% comfortable with either Biden or Trump for myriad reasons, it’s great news that we don’t have to worry about Sanders becoming the Democratic nominee.
Bethany Mandel (@bethanyshondark) is a stay-at-home, homeschooling mother of four and freelance writer. She is an editor at Ricochet.com, a columnist at the Forward, and a contributor to the Washington Examiner’s Beltway Confidential blog.
