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Friday November 20, 1998

Jews, Democrats natural allies, author says at JCRC meeting

LAUREL ROSEN
Bulletin Correspondent

"Jews and Politics in the Next Millennium" was the title of J.J. Goldberg's talk at Sunday's Jewish Community Relations Council all-county conference.

A more appropriate title, however, would have been "Why Jews Should Remain Democrats in the Next Millennium" since Goldberg's real focus was the ability of the Democratic Party -- and only the Democratic Party -- to look out for the interests of the Jewish community.

The author and columnist addressed JCRC members at Sunday's conference, held at San Francisco State University.

Having won many of their own battles, Jews have become advocates for civil rights, the environment, abortion rights and gun control. And though these issues, also championed by Democrats, are less obviously Jewish, Goldberg maintains that they speak directly to Jews, who are "an army for social justice."

Jewish dedication to these values is important because "generally speaking Americans by about 3-to-1 favor prayer in schools, favor public display of religious symbols, basically believe that the separation of church and state has gone far enough, maybe even too far," he said.

Goldberg received a few chuckles, but no gasps of surprise, when he said, "Republicans and the Jewish community have to learn to be satisfied with mutual respect rather than intimacy because mutual respect is about as close as it's going to get."

Turning to the success of the state of Israel and the secure relocation of Soviet Jews, he said, "We as a Jewish people, with the machine that we have built and have oiled, have accomplished earth-shattering tasks in the last quarter century."

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