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The Role of Israeli Lobby in U.S. Presidential Election
"Bill, I think you're going to be President someday. I think you'll do a good job, but there's one thing above all you must remember: God will never forgive you if you don't stand by Israel."
Paster W.O.Vaught to Bill Clinton (Clinton, 2004:353)
Never in the time that I led the American negotiations on the Middle East peace process did we take a step because 'the lobby' wanted us to. Nor did we shy away from one because 'the lobby' opposed it. That is not to say that AIPAC and others have no influence. They do. But they don't distort U.S. policy or undermine American interests. (Denis B. Ross former U.S. ambassador and peace negotiator under Bill Clinton.)
While most of the countries of the world - at least apparently -are demanding Israel to change and revise its policies toward Palestine and withdrew from occupied territories, United States still supports Israel strongly. For decades US government has provided Israel with military, financial and diplomatic supports; and both major parties of United States, Republicans and Democrats, unquestionably support Israel. America supports Israel despite the great expanses that this backing imposes on America and Americans.
This excessive support is backed and forced by the exercise of influence of Israeli lobby in America. Israeli and Jewish lobby are very influential in Americans foreign policy and this influence becomes clearer when it is compared to other ethnic minorities in U.S. such as Arab Lobbies or Armenians. Perhaps three important factors can explain the reason of this unconditional support: Israel's strategic value, Jewish economic influence and power in various arenas including US presidential election, and the emergence of Evangelical and Christian Zionism.
Many books and articles are written about the influence of Jewish and Israeli lobbyist in the process of American decision making. While some observers believe that Jews play a very important role in American policy, others maintain that this influence is exaggerated. This is the case in the issue of U.S. presidential election: some observers argue that the U.S. presidents have to give special interest after their election due to the financial helps they receive from Jewish contributors in their presidential campaigns; also Jews have a high rate of turnout in presidential election compared to non-Jew Americans. Others believe that the amount of Jew's financial contribution is not that much significant, on the other hand Jews make only 3 percent of American population.
The question is that is Jew's financial contribution in form of campaign donation, and high rate of turn out the only reason for the U.S. president's support for Israel or as it was mentioned there are other reasons responsible for this unconditional support.
The theory used in this paper is political theory of Pluralism; based on this theory the political power in the society is not limited to the governments, the electorate or a small group of elite, but it is distributed among a wide number of groups including interested groups- here Israeli lobby which plays an important role in American foreign policy as the most influential minority group in the U.S. This concept versus the idea that the power is mostly concentrated in the governments.
The method of this research is content analysis: the research tries to clarify the point and illustrate this relationship with providing some data and statistics about the amount of Jew's financial contribution to the process of presidential election, as well as some extracts of Clinton and Bush speeches which is addressed to support this influential ethnic group. The method of data collection is use of books and primary documents (speeches) and the internet.
U.S Presidential Candidates and Support for Israel
In U.S. presidential campaigns all the candidates, no matter whether they are Republican or Democrats, have one commonality and a subject that they all agree, at least publicly, and that is U.S. relation and support of Israel. Though there is a controversy about extend of the support in major parties (Republicans and Democrats); some believe that Democrats are more intense in their support of Israel, others argue that Evangelical Christians who vote heavily for Republicans are stronger in their support for Israel. Nevertheless American Jews vote more to democratic candidates, and it is said that only 25% of Jews voted for George Bush in 2004. This table shows the relationship between party affiliation and religious identification:
As the table suggest the Jews tend to be more democrats than republican.
Nevertheless the republicans, and in this case George Bush defends Israel and its policies. in his speech addressed to American Jewish committee in may 2001 he said that his top foreign policy priority is the safety and security of Israel, and that his administration would support Israel against terrorism and violence steadfastly:
"By defending the freedom and prosperity and security of Israel, you're also serving the cause of America. Our nation is stronger and safer because we have a true and dependable ally in Israel" (Bush’s Address to the AIPAC Policy Conference, May 8, 2004)
George W. Bush made his first trip to Israel before deciding to run for Presidential campaigns.
Bill Clinton nominated two Supreme Court Justices, both Jewish. In his first term, he had two Jewish Cabinet members and dozens of Jews held other key Administration posts. Clinton's reply after Israeli Ambassador Shoval presented his credentials. In September 10, 1998 he said that America and Israel share special bond and that American and Israeli relation are unique: "Like America, Israel is a strong democracy, as a symbol of freedom, and an oasis of liberty, a home to the oppressed and persecuted." (September 10, 1998).
After his presidency, Clinton at a Jewish fund-raiser in Toronto said that: If Iraq came across the Jordan River, I would grab a rifle and get in the trench and fight and die." It is while Clinton had avoided serving in Vietnam. In 1995 when all 14 members of U.N. Security Council called on Israel to rescind a decision to expropriate 130 acres of land in Jerusalem, Clinton vetoed it.
What is the reason for this unconditional support? It is said that presidential candidates must support Israel to increase their chance of presidency. By supporting Israel they will have the support of the Jewish minority in presidential election both in voting and campaign donation and the media which plays a very important role in public opinion. The candidates promise material and diplomatic support and none of them criticize Israel policies. First of all it is better to have some information about the American Jewish population and demography.
"Bill, I think you're going to be President someday. I think you'll do a good job, but there's one thing above all you must remember: God will never forgive you if you don't stand by Israel."
Paster W.O.Vaught to Bill Clinton (Clinton, 2004:353)
Never in the time that I led the American negotiations on the Middle East peace process did we take a step because 'the lobby' wanted us to. Nor did we shy away from one because 'the lobby' opposed it. That is not to say that AIPAC and others have no influence. They do. But they don't distort U.S. policy or undermine American interests. (Denis B. Ross former U.S. ambassador and peace negotiator under Bill Clinton.)
While most of the countries of the world - at least apparently -are demanding Israel to change and revise its policies toward Palestine and withdrew from occupied territories, United States still supports Israel strongly. For decades US government has provided Israel with military, financial and diplomatic supports; and both major parties of United States, Republicans and Democrats, unquestionably support Israel. America supports Israel despite the great expanses that this backing imposes on America and Americans.
This excessive support is backed and forced by the exercise of influence of Israeli lobby in America. Israeli and Jewish lobby are very influential in Americans foreign policy and this influence becomes clearer when it is compared to other ethnic minorities in U.S. such as Arab Lobbies or Armenians. Perhaps three important factors can explain the reason of this unconditional support: Israel's strategic value, Jewish economic influence and power in various arenas including US presidential election, and the emergence of Evangelical and Christian Zionism.
Many books and articles are written about the influence of Jewish and Israeli lobbyist in the process of American decision making. While some observers believe that Jews play a very important role in American policy, others maintain that this influence is exaggerated. This is the case in the issue of U.S. presidential election: some observers argue that the U.S. presidents have to give special interest after their election due to the financial helps they receive from Jewish contributors in their presidential campaigns; also Jews have a high rate of turnout in presidential election compared to non-Jew Americans. Others believe that the amount of Jew's financial contribution is not that much significant, on the other hand Jews make only 3 percent of American population.
The question is that is Jew's financial contribution in form of campaign donation, and high rate of turn out the only reason for the U.S. president's support for Israel or as it was mentioned there are other reasons responsible for this unconditional support.
The theory used in this paper is political theory of Pluralism; based on this theory the political power in the society is not limited to the governments, the electorate or a small group of elite, but it is distributed among a wide number of groups including interested groups- here Israeli lobby which plays an important role in American foreign policy as the most influential minority group in the U.S. This concept versus the idea that the power is mostly concentrated in the governments.
The method of this research is content analysis: the research tries to clarify the point and illustrate this relationship with providing some data and statistics about the amount of Jew's financial contribution to the process of presidential election, as well as some extracts of Clinton and Bush speeches which is addressed to support this influential ethnic group. The method of data collection is use of books and primary documents (speeches) and the internet.
U.S Presidential Candidates and Support for Israel
In U.S. presidential campaigns all the candidates, no matter whether they are Republican or Democrats, have one commonality and a subject that they all agree, at least publicly, and that is U.S. relation and support of Israel. Though there is a controversy about extend of the support in major parties (Republicans and Democrats); some believe that Democrats are more intense in their support of Israel, others argue that Evangelical Christians who vote heavily for Republicans are stronger in their support for Israel. Nevertheless American Jews vote more to democratic candidates, and it is said that only 25% of Jews voted for George Bush in 2004. This table shows the relationship between party affiliation and religious identification:
As the table suggest the Jews tend to be more democrats than republican.
Nevertheless the republicans, and in this case George Bush defends Israel and its policies. in his speech addressed to American Jewish committee in may 2001 he said that his top foreign policy priority is the safety and security of Israel, and that his administration would support Israel against terrorism and violence steadfastly:
"By defending the freedom and prosperity and security of Israel, you're also serving the cause of America. Our nation is stronger and safer because we have a true and dependable ally in Israel" (Bush’s Address to the AIPAC Policy Conference, May 8, 2004)
George W. Bush made his first trip to Israel before deciding to run for Presidential campaigns.
Bill Clinton nominated two Supreme Court Justices, both Jewish. In his first term, he had two Jewish Cabinet members and dozens of Jews held other key Administration posts. Clinton's reply after Israeli Ambassador Shoval presented his credentials. In September 10, 1998 he said that America and Israel share special bond and that American and Israeli relation are unique: "Like America, Israel is a strong democracy, as a symbol of freedom, and an oasis of liberty, a home to the oppressed and persecuted." (September 10, 1998).
After his presidency, Clinton at a Jewish fund-raiser in Toronto said that: If Iraq came across the Jordan River, I would grab a rifle and get in the trench and fight and die." It is while Clinton had avoided serving in Vietnam. In 1995 when all 14 members of U.N. Security Council called on Israel to rescind a decision to expropriate 130 acres of land in Jerusalem, Clinton vetoed it.
What is the reason for this unconditional support? It is said that presidential candidates must support Israel to increase their chance of presidency. By supporting Israel they will have the support of the Jewish minority in presidential election both in voting and campaign donation and the media which plays a very important role in public opinion. The candidates promise material and diplomatic support and none of them criticize Israel policies. First of all it is better to have some information about the American Jewish population and demography.
American Jewish population and demography
About 2.5% up to 3% of Americans are Jews, which is near to 5 to 6 million people of the American population. The American Jews do not have the same religious affiliation and they are not homogenous: their population consists of Orthodoxies, Conservatives and Reformists. So as it is clear all Jews are not considered to be extremist. But a poll in 2005 showed that 82% of American Jews supported Israel and 63% said that they support it "strongly". These strong supporters tend to support division of Jerusalem and building a security fence, and naturally the same people would support a president with high commitment to Israeli affairs.
Jewish population in America has high turnout rate in presidential election compared to non- Jew Americans and other ethnic minorities; at the same time most of the Jewish voters, near 89 percent, are inhabited in key states like: California, Illinois, New York, Pennsylvania, and Florida. While it is argued that the low percentage of Jews cannot be that much influential in the result of the election, but the electoral college system is in such a way that even few number of voters can have significant influence on the final result, esp. in this case where the Jewish population is concentrated in important states as it was mentioned.
Another important point is the Evangelical Christians with much greater population compared to Jews and they play an important role in the outcome of the election, this would be described later in the paper.
Jew's Campaign Donations
It is said that Jewish individuals are nearly 25% of the Forbes 400 list of richest Americans, though this number is not exact and some believe that the number for the rich Jewish Americans is more or less than this rate. Considering the Jewish population (2% to 3% of whole population), 25% is significant. It is believed that this wealthy Jews play a very important role generally in U.S. policy toward Israel and specifically in U.S. presidential election: The Center for Responsive Politics (CRP) declared that pro-Israeli groups and individuals have donated more than $ 845,000 to presidential candidates in 2008. In 2004 presidential campaign pro- Israeli interests contributed at least $ 6.1 million to federal candidates and parties. Washington post had concluded that about $ 56.8 million have been contributed by pro-Israel individual and groups since 1990.
But here a question will arise: $ 845,000 or $ 6.1 or even $ 56.8 million in 15 or 16 years is not that significant at all if we compare it with the total campaign expanse which is dozens of millions of dollars and the candidates have to raise enormous amount of money to finance their campaigns. These tables illustrate the amount of money contributed by PACs and individuals in both republican and democrat parties: (the tables are taken from Jewish virtual library which should be taken into consideration, the title is pro-Israel contribution).
Analysis
One the most important problem that the researcher of this paper faced was lack of authentic evidence and information; the tables and statistics had significant discrepancy when they were compared. The reason for this discrepancy and contradictions is that these sorts of information are dependent on the writer's affiliation and tendencies and making distinction between the fake and genuine statistics and information is difficult.
As it was mentioned nearly 25% of the Forbes 400 list of richest Americans are Jews, and this rate is significant if it is compared the Jew's total population in America. It can be said that wealthy Jews are very influential in American economy and many important cooperation and companies are dominated by them. The Jews are also very influential in American media including CNN, CBS, ABC, Newsweek and Time magazine due to their wealth and power. In one of the most recent polls reported by Gallup in Feb. 2007, 58% of Americans sympathies with Israeli and 20% with Palestinians, which shows the great influence of what is propagated by media. This influence is seen in other important arenas such as academia and think thanks which shape the public opinion. So, it can be argued that American people are growing up in an atmosphere that is highly sympathetic toward Israeli and Jews; and their perception about the Jews is manipulated and biased, and any critic is silenced or charged as anti-Semitist. Jimmy Carter has written about this reluctance to criticize Israel policy:
The many controversial issues concerning Palestine and the path to peace for Israel are intensely debated among Israelis and throughout other nations — but not in the United States. For the last 30 years, I have witnessed and experienced the severe restraints on any free and balanced discussion of the facts. This reluctance to criticize any policies of the Israeli government is because of the extraordinary lobbying efforts of the American-Israel Political Action Committee and the absence of any significant contrary voices. ...
A Biblical Israel
Another important point is the emergence of the power of Evangelical Christianity or Christian Zionism in America. Evangelists feel an ideological attachment to the Jews and esp. Israel. A recent Poll found 59% of U.S. evangelicals believe Israel is fulfillment of Bible's prophecy; The Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs estimates 85 million evangelicals believe God tells them to support Israel -- more than six times the world's Jewish population (God's Warriors, Christiane Amanpour), this great population can be crucial for the outcome of the election. They also raise money to support Jewish settlements in Israel. Evangelist Americans are becoming more powerful in recent years and many of them are active members in The American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC). Many important political figures in America including George W. Bush, Bill Clinton, Dick Cheney, Hillary Clinton, John Edwards, John McCain, and Barack Obama… had attained and address in their conferences.
Conclusion
It is a common belief that the wealthy Jews are playing a very important and influential role in U.S. policy but this financial helps are not unilateral: "total direct U.S. aid to Israel amounts to well over $ 140 billion in 2003 dollars." (Greenbook website). Or "Israel receives about $3 billion Dollars annually and is one the largest recipient of American aids since World War II." (Mearsheimer & Walt, 2006). So the relationship between Israel and America is a symbiotic one in which the two parties gain some advantages, though there are lots of debates about who benefits more.
Many observers maintain that the Jews are playing an important role in the executive branch due to their financial contribution to presidential campaigns and their high rate of turn out in elections.
But can we argue that the only reason for American President's support for Israel is Jews financial contribution? As it was illustrated by tables and statistics the amount of money which is donated by pro-Israeli groups are not significant when it is compared with the total sum; on the other hand the sum of money contributed by these groups are not very authentic or exact, so it makes it very difficult to draw a conclusion based on the released data and statistics.
As it was mentioned 25% of the Forbes 400 lists of richest Americans are Jews, which is significant compared to Jew's 3% population. These wealthy Jews can be very influential in important companies and co operations, in mass media and academic centers. What Bill Clinton said about fighting and dying for Israel was said after his two- term presidency, or what his paster told him as a young man was long before that. Clinton, Bush and other American politicians were grown up in the society which was and is under the influence of Jews hegemony: this is the media that teaches and influences ordinary Americans, and this academia that educates the elites. And no voice can be heard when there is any critic about the Israel policy, so it is very natural that ordinary Americans or even the more educated or the elites feel more sympathy with the Israel than the Arab Palestinians. Perhaps it can be said that the Evangelical Christian or Christian Zionists are the result of these sort of teaching and educating; "There are a lot more Christian Zionists in America than Jewish Zionists," the former Democratic vice presidential candidate said. "The support of Christian Zionists today is critical to Israel's security and strength and to America's security and strength." (God's Warriors, Christiane Amanpour).
As the researcher of this paper I personally believe that the only reason for Americans support for Israel can not be just the financial power of the Jews; there is a high moral commitment and ideological attachment in American political leaders toward Israel. But it can be argued that indirectly again this is the money who talks: this is the money that can dominate the media, education and the academia and will educate the future leaders of Americas the way it wants.
Bibliography
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