by beth young
jta
John McCain’s reputation as a maverick holds true in the Jewish world, where his list of allies spans the political spectrum.
His long-term support for Israel and human rights issues along with his willingness to cross party lines has won him allies among Republicans, Democrats and even some liberal Jews.
Topping his list of Jewish supporters is Joe Lieberman, the Independent Connecticut senator who made headlines by endorsing the presidential bid of his Republican colleague from Arizona and stumping for him in New Hampshire and Florida.
A senator since 1986, McCain has developed a reputation for breaking with his Republican colleagues on some issues. Most famously he joined with Russ Feingold, a Jewish Democrat from Wisconsin, in passing the McCain-Feingold Campaign Finance Reform Act in 2002.
In a poll of American Jewish opinion released before the primaries and caucuses began, McCain ranked behind former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani as the second-favored Republican.
But all that may have changed after Giuliani placed a distant third in the Florida primary (as of press time, he was prepared to leave the race and endorse McCain).
Fred Zeidman, a Texas venture capitalist and McCain’s top fundraiser, said Giuliani’s fundraisers, among them prominent Republican Jews, were coming over to the McCain campaign in droves.
Zeidman said it would be a natural transition for supporters of Giuliani to switch to McCain.
“It’s a trust issue,” he said. “One of the things people always liked about Rudy Giuliani is that he was going to tell you what was on his mind.”
But McCain has drawn support from staunch Republican and politically conservative Jews as well.
Among them is Mark Broxmeyer — the national chairman of the Jewish Institute for National Security Affairs, a New York property developer and the chairman of McCain’s Jewish advisory committee.
JINSA has been among the most consistent supporters of the Bush administration’s Iraq policy.
McCain at times also has drawn support — if not political backing — from left-wing Jews. The U.S. branch of Rabbis for Human Rights met with McCain to support his 2005 amendment to a defense appropriations bill that prohibits inhumane treatment of prisoners, including those at Guantánamo Bay, and also narrowly defined acceptable interrogation practices.
McCain repeatedly has cited Israel’s 1999 ban on torture in refuting claims that it is a helpful tool in combating terrorism.
His relationship with President Bush has changed over the years. Bush and McCain sparred fiercely in the 2000 presidential campaign, and the senator is rumored to have toyed with a vice presidency offer from Massachusetts Sen. John Kerry in 2004.
That marginalized McCain among some party loyalists, leading McCain to initially tamp down his criticisms of Bush in this campaign.
Recently, however, he reversed that policy, including a few barbs in his speech to the Republican Jewish Coalition candidates’ forum in October 2007 — all the more notable because the RJC is a redoubt of Bush loyalists.
Noting reports of the success of the surge of ground troops in Iraq, McCain reminded the RJC crowd that his was the lone voice advocating additional troops in 2004.
McCain drew criticism last fall after he told Beliefnet.com that he would prefer to vote for a candidate who shared his Christian religious views. Republican Jewish leaders said McCain’s offhand remarks needed to be put in context with his longstanding support for the Jewish people.
“While members of the Republican Jewish Coalition would not have expressed themselves in the manner Sen. McCain did, a full reading of the entire interview shows Sen. McCain unequivocally reaffirming the separation of church and state and recognizing the Judeo-Christian values upon which this country was founded,” the coalition said in a statement.
McCain’s biggest credential may be the longevity of his career, said Fred Zeidman.
“John McCain is the only candidate that has a 20-year demonstrated history of unequivocal support for the state of Israel,” he said. “I think it’s fascinating to watch the world evolve back toward John McCain. To see him back in the front of this race is a credit to the citizens of this country.”