Let's give Rick Perry credit for a great sense of timing. Taking his cue from the special election in New York's 9th Congressional District, Perry chooses this moment to start laying out his foreign policy principles, in particular that the U.S. must not waver in its support for the state of Israel.
The historic friendship between the United States and Israel stretches from the founding of the Jewish state in 1948 to the present day. Our nations have developed vital economic and security relationships in an alliance based on shared democratic principles, deep cultural ties, and common strategic interests.
Obama pays lip service to the importance of our ties to Israel, and in NY-09 they know it. It's a district where Democrats enjoy a 3-1 advantage in voter registration, but it's also said to be the most Jewish district in the country. And now it's a district that the Democrats have lost. For the first time in nearly a century they lost, yet they remain oblivious to the impact of Obama's anti-Israel policies.
Representative Debbie Wasserman Schultz of Florida, the chairwoman of the Democratic National Committee, said the district’s large concentration of Orthodox Jews made it unusual and meant the race had few national ramifications.
“In this district, there is a large number of people who went to the polls tonight who didn’t support the president to begin with and don’t support Democrats — and it’s nothing more than that,” she said in a telephone interview.
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“I am a registered Democrat, I have always been a registered Democrat, I come from a family of Democrats — and I hate to say this, I voted Republican,” said Linda Goldberg, 61, after casting her ballot in Queens. “I need to send a message to the president that he’s not doing a very good job. Our economy is horrible. People are scared.”
Obama's policies are costly ones for the Democrats, and it is becoming more evident each day. What a perfect time for Governor Perry to put the focus on America's historic ties to Israel. What a contrast he is to Obama and the Democrats, and in so many ways.
Update: Obama's poll numbers slip with Jewish voters.
President Barack Obama’s support among Jews has dropped, new data shows.
Four out of 10 Jewish Americans currently disapprove of Obama, according to polling data provided to POLITICO by Gallup, which has yet to post the numbers on its website.
