A small minority of my fellow orthodox Jews have taken me to task for enthusiastically supporting Mitt Romney in his quest for the US presidency, and opposing Barack Hussein Obama.
“How can you support Romney when he has expressed his support for a two state solution in Israel? What makes you think he will be any better than Obama?
For starters, Obama has implemented a disastrous foreign policy, in which Obama has courted and flattered America’s enemies and insulted America’s friends. He has borrowed and printed America’s way out of short term difficulties, leaving us with a huge debt to China and to other nations, who are now angry that the dollars that they have in their foreign currency reserves have lost so much value under Obama.
On the military front, it now has come to light that the White House knew about the Benghazi attack and watched it in real time, and chose to do nothing. In light of this, it is now apparent that the official White House knew from the start that the Mohamed video had nothing to do with the Benghazi attack. Indeed, the White House apologies triggered secondary riots in the Muslim world in which many people lost their lives. This leaves the White House with some level of culpability in inadvertently fomenting this unrest.
It is not possible to separate Israel’s well being under current circumstances from that of its allies. A militarily weak America is not in Israel’s interests. In our global economy, economic malaise in America hurts our allies as well. Without even mentioning Jerusalem, peace negotiations even mentioning Israel, it is possible to point to establish a multitude of reasons why Obama and his policies are a disaster for Israel.
The sad reality of Israel is that the Democrats, the Republicans and the Israeli government have expressed support for a” two state sololution”, which could not be implemented without dismembering Israel. In reality, It would be far better for Israel to firmly establish the following.
1) Israel does not want any foreign troops on its soil. All of Israel’s wars in 64 years have been fought by Israel, with no foreign troops along side of it. With G-d’s help, this is how Israel has survived. When Israel’s leaders speak of an Iranian threat, it is Israeli lives that they are putting on the line in any Israeli response.
2) Israel does not need or want an”honest broker” telling it to give up land for promises. Every day, Israel maintains the peace through quiet, off camera contacts with Arabs in the Palestinian Authority and in neighbouring countries to facilitate day to day material needs of everyone in the region. Photo ops on the White House lawn have accomplished nothing.
3) Taiwan and mainland China have officially not recognised each other for 63 years. This has not stopped them from being major trading partners. Let Israel and its neighbours maintain their legal and diplomatic fictions as well. The bottom line is the question of who delivers the mail and who picks up the garbage.
4) Israel has been a source of intelligence and logistical support to the US in an otherwise hostile region. Israel is grateful for the favours it receives from the US government, but it pays for them as well. To pretend otherwise is demagoguery.
5) Recognition or non recognition of Israel’s borders or its capital is not of foremost importance. If you call the police in Jerusalem, an Israeli will come to your door, and not a Jordanian. It should be noted that Arabs in Israel have more political rights and a better standard of living than they do in Arab countries. This has actually changed what Arabs expect from their own governments. Let Israel handle its relations with its neighbours, the same way France and Spain, Germany and the Czech Republic, and Taiwan and Mainland China handle their relations with each other. Arabs will say what they will say. Israelis will likewise manufacture soundbites. But day by day, with G-d’s help we will get along. Mainland China and Taiwan have evolved into major trading partners not through international peace conferences but through off camera daily contacts over decades. Sometimes history moves slowly. Get used to it.
Israel ‘s existence and that of the Jewish people is tied to the Torah, and the promises stated in it by G-d to the Jewish people. It is ultimately G-d that will be the guarantor of that promise, and not any superpower. Mitt Romney has spent his life espousing a faith vastly different from Judaism. However we may differ from him on theology, Romney has hung tenaciously to a faith that, like ours is often maligned. He isa man who trusts in a Greater Power, however he defines it, has some limits, rules and boundaries. If there is any common ground between Israelis and Romney, it would be based on a belief in this Higher Power.
May G-d guide Romney as he, with G-d’s help assumes leadership of the United States of America. And may all people, Jews and gentiles alike, have reason to thank Romney for being an instrument of G-d’s will.
