If you are appealing to a liberal audience, it makes sense to call your opponent an “Orthodox Jew.” Orthodox Jews are not know as liberal-friendly.<\/p>\n
It makes sense to me to identify your opponents identity, whether it is WASP, Jewish, gay, Muslim or whatever because that will likely predict how they will vote.<\/p>\n
I think Jan Schakowsky is a wimp and she has nothing to apologize for in this instance.<\/p>\n
Forward.com<\/a>: U.S. Rep. Jan Schakowsky of Illinois apologized for referring to a one-time political rival as an \u201cOrthodox Jew\u201d in casting him as a threat to liberal interests. If you are appealing to a liberal audience, it makes sense to call your opponent an “Orthodox Jew.” Orthodox Jews are not know as liberal-friendly. It makes sense to me to identify your opponents identity, whether it is WASP, Jewish, … Continue reading
\n\u201cIt was correctly noted that my description of my 2010 opponent in the congressional race irrelevantly noted that in addition to being a Tea Party Republican, he is an Orthodox Jew,\u201d she said in a statement Tuesday, referring to her address Monday to J Street, the liberal Jewish Middle East policy group.
\n\u201cI understand how this was heard, by extension, as an affront to the Orthodox community. I regret that and unequivocally apologize for it,\u201d the Democrat\u2019s statement said.
\nSchakowsky, who is Jewish, in her speech was describing how J Street\u2019s political backing allowed her to take positions that once were unpopular in the pro-Israel community.
\n\u201cSome of the courage to take positions that I\u2019ve been able to take are really because of the space that, in a very short time, J Street has opened for members of Congress to expand the political discussion about the state of Israel and our relation toward it,\u201d she said.
\n\u201cIn 2010, I had an election within our community. That is, I ran against a Jewish Orthodox Tea Party Republican who made it very clear that actually, Jan Schakowsky was anti-Israel because of the positions that she took,\u201d Schakowsky said. She thanked J Street because it \u201ccame to the rescue\u201d with money and moral support.
\nSchakowsky in 2010 faced Joel Pollak, a conservative activist, in her suburban Chicago district.
\nAfter JTA tweeted a reference to Schakowsky\u2019s comments, the Orthodox Union asked her for a clarification.
\n\u201cIn the context of her remarks and speaking to such an audience, the Congresswoman\u2019s use of the term \u2018Orthodox\u2019 was a negative term \u2013 as negative for that audience as Tea Party and Republican,\u201d the O.U.\u2019s Washington director, Nathan Diament, said in a statement.
\n\u201cThis morning, upon learning about her remarks, we spoke with Rep. Schakowsky and conveyed how offended we were by the apparent intent of her remarks,\u201d he said. \u201cWe appreciate the unequivocal apology issued by Rep. Schakowsky in response to our concerns. We hope such an incident will not occur again.\u201d
\nSchakowsky in her statement continued to fault Pollak for his campaign, which emphasized what he depicted as her wrongheaded posture on Israel.
\n\u201cWhile I believe my opponent\u2019s campaign irresponsibly attempted to divide the Jewish community and 9th District voters by attacking my unblemished record in support of Israel, I do not attribute his actions to the fact that he is Orthodox and regret that my words sounded otherwise,\u201d she said. \u201cI hope those I offended will accept my heartfelt apology.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"