Brightonian to speak at the Republican Convention
David Flaum, a property developer from Brighton, is scheduled to speak to the Republican National Convention next week in St. Paul. He is the chairman of the Republican Jewish Coalition. From the D&C:
While Jewish voters are largely enrolled as Democrats nationally, some have turned to McCain because they have viewed him as stronger on Israel than Democratic candidate Barack Obama.
“David Flaum’s participation in the GOP convention program is another example of the high priority the GOP gives to the issues of importance to the Jewish community and another indicator of the continued inroads the GOP is making amongst Jewish voters,” said the group’s executive director, Matt Brooks.
“Continued inroads”? Are you kidding me? Of the 43 members of the House and Senate who are Jewish, only three of them are Republicans. That’s right, 93% of the Jewish members of Congress are Democrats. And with Arlen Specter possibly retiring in 2010, and Norm Coleman possibly being defeated this November, that number of Jewish Republicans in Congress may go as low as one within the next few years.
Being a Jew from Brighton myself, I can tell you from years of firsthand experience, the overwhelming majority of us are progressives, if not all-out Democrats. Have any of you ever driven around Brighton in the fall of an election year? There isn’t a Republican lawn-sign anywhere in sight. At the town hall meetings with Randy Kuhl, which have apparently been discontinued, no one has ever had anything positive to say to him.
Jewish voters supported Kerry in 2004 by nearly a 3-to-1 majority of 25% to 74%. And while Jewish Democrats largely supported Clinton in the primaries, it is another group that has quickly transitioned its support to Obama and we are now one of his strongest constituencies. Indeed, Obama is now far more popular among Jewish voters than even Joe Lieberman.
“Inroads”? More like out-roads.
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