Anti-Defamation League: Obama okay; McCain equivocates
Wed Feb 27, 2008 at 02:15:53 PM PST
The Anti-Defamation League, and it longtime leader Abe Foxman, are not considered a liberal or progressive organization by liberals or progressives. There is plenty of criticism of them from the left. They are quite quick to call anti-Semitism on anybody... Black or White, Christian or Muslim, Republican and Democrat, etc.
They are absolutely part of mainstream American Jewish leadership.
Basically, they give the good housekeeping seal of approval on whether or not you or your statements are anti-semitic. If you are koshered by them, then you should be kosher for the rest of us (certainly us Jews).
So where does the ADL stand on Senator Obama and Minister Farrakhan?
And by the way, does the ADL have anything to say about John McCain?
On the one hand, the ADL has been tracking, and repeatedly calling out Minister Farrakahn and the Nation of Islam for anti-semitism, for years.
So how about the Reverend Jeremiah A. Wright Jr.?
Well according to Jodi Kantor's (in)famous NY Times article in April 2007, buried on the last page in parentheses is the following:
(For its part, the Anti-Defamation League says it has no evidence of any anti-Semitism by Mr. Wright.)
(I will have more the Rev. Wright "issue" in another diary, another day)
But what Obama himself?
Well after Cohen and others had raised the 2 or 3 degrees of connection (Obama to Wright to Wright's daughter & Farrkahn), and after Obama's statement here is what the ADL said back on January 15, 2008:
We welcome Barack Obama's condemnation of the anti-Semitic rhetoric of Minister Louis Farrakhan, and his making clear that he did not agree with his church's decision to honor Farrakhan with the Dr. Jeremiah A. Wright Jr. Trumpeter Award.
Issues of racism and anti-Semitism must be beyond the bounds of politics. When someone close to a political figure shows sympathy and support for an individual who makes his name espousing bigotry, that political figure needs to distance himself from that decision. Senator Obama has done just that.
Obama did not equivocate. End of story. Or so rational people thought.
Alas, thanks to our deeply stupid and/or biased media (hello Russert), the ADL and Foxman have had to repeat themselves, such as today:
The head of the Anti-Defamation League says it's time to pack away the Farrakhan fears when it comes to Barack Obama.
"He was very clear," said Abraham Foxman, the ADL's national director, describing the response of the Illinois senator who was asked in a debate Tuesday about the public praise he received over the weekend from the Nation of Islam leader.
"He distanced himself and condemned it and rejected it," Foxman said. "What more do we want? On that issue we should move on."
Although apparently Ann Lewis and Mark Penn and the Clinton campaign still want to kvetch.
So what about John McCain?
There we have both a problem and lots of unsettled equivication, though you would not know it from the MSM.
Back in the fall of 2007, McCain gave an interview at BeliefNet. Full context, here is what he said:
Q: Has the candidates’ personal faith become too big an issue in the presidential race?
McCain: Questions about that are very legitimate.... And it's also appropriate for me at certain points in the conversation to say, look, that's sort of a private matter between me and my Creator.... But I think the number one issue people should make [in the] selection of the President of the United States is, 'Will this person carry on in the Judeo Christian principled tradition that has made this nation the greatest experiment in the history of mankind?'"
Q: It doesn't seem like a Muslim candidate would do very well, according to that standard.
McCain: I admire the Islam. There's a lot of good principles in it. I think one of the great tragedies of the 21st century is that these forces of evil have perverted what's basically an honorable religion. But, no, I just have to say in all candor that since this nation was founded primarily on Christian principles.... personally, I prefer someone who I know who has a solid grounding in my faith. But that doesn't mean that I'm sure that someone who is Muslim would not make a good president. I don't say that we would rule out under any circumstances someone of a different faith. I just would--I just feel that that's an important part of our qualifications to lead.*
Q: A recent poll found that 55 percent of Americans believe the U.S. Constitution establishes a Christian nation. What do you think?
McCain: I would probably have to say yes, that the Constitution established the United States of America as a Christian nation. But I say that in the broadest sense. The lady that holds her lamp beside the golden door doesn't say, "I only welcome Christians." We welcome the poor, the tired, the huddled masses. But when they come here they know that they are in a nation founded on Christian principles.
*McCain contacted Beliefnet after the interview to clarify his remarks: "I would vote for a Muslim if he or she was the candidate best able to lead the country and defend our political values."
In response, on October 1, 2007 the ADL and McCain exchanged some letters:
ADL's first letter in full:
We write in response to your recent interview posted on Beliefnet.com. We and others are confused and dismayed by the comments you made in the course of this interview. On the one hand, you correctly noted that our Founding Fathers unequivocally believed in the separation of church and state. Yet you then came to the conclusion that "the Constitution established the United States of America as a Christian nation."
While this view may reflect what recent polls show is the opinion shared by a majority of Americans today, it is false. Absolutely nothing in the Constitution establishes that the U.S. is a Christian nation, nor is it accurate to say that this nation was founded on Christian principles.
The sources that influence the framers ranged from Greek and Roman law, to John Locke, to Scottish Common Sense philosophers to Calvinism. The Founding Fathers actually rejected attempts to include Biblical passages and religious principles in the Constitution. In fact, every attempt to include official recognition of Christianity in the United States Constitution was defeated. The secular character of the new nation was affirmed in the Treaty of Tripoli (1797) which was negotiated under George Washington and signed by John Adams: "The Government of the United States is not, in any sense, founded on the Christian religion."
We were pleased that you clarified your earlier remarks about Muslims' suitability to serve as president, and made it clear that you would be willing to vote for a Muslim candidate. As you well know, our Constitution explicitly states that "no religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any office or public trust under the United States."
While the Anti-Defamation League is non-partisan and does not endorse or oppose any candidate for office, we believe deeply that voters should be making their decisions on the basis of a candidate's qualifications and positions on substantive issues. We do not ask candidates to hide their religious heritage or the impact religion has had on them. But appeals to voters based on religion are inevitably divisive and contrary to the democratic ideals upon which our nation was truly founded.
We urge you to reconsider and withdraw your statements describing the United States as a "Christian nation" and a "nation founded on Christian principles." Not only were your assertions inaccurate, they were also ill-advised for any candidate seeking to lead a nation as religiously diverse and pluralistic as ours.
McCain's reply in full:
You have misconstrued my interview with Beliefnet, in which I made repeated references to the "Judeo-Christian" values that informed our founding fathers' respect for human rights. I did not assert that members of one faith have a greater claim to American citizenship than another. In fact, I stressed the opposite, noting that "the lady who holds her lamp beside the golden door doesn't say 'I only welcome Christians.'" Read in context, the interview makes clear that I believe people of all faiths are welcome here and entitled to all the protections of our Constitution, including the unfettered right to practice their religion freely. In the interview, I observed that the values protected by the Constitution - such as respect for human life and dignity - are rooted in the Judeo-Christian tradition. That is all I intended to say to the question: is America a Christian nation?
While I acknowledged that I might be more comfortable voting for someone who shared that tradition, I also made clear that a candidate's faith should not be a barrier to running for or serving in high office. And in a clarification I gave Beliefnet shortly after the interview I said I could support a Muslim candidate for President, if I believed he or she were the best qualified to serve in that capacity.
I hope you will now see that your concern was misplaced. I have always made it a practice to put the country's best interests before my own, and have always avoided seeking political gain by aggravating racial or religious divisions among us, and I regret the insinuation that I would. Indeed, I do not think you can find anything in my life and political record to suggest the contrary. I was asserting nothing more controversial than that I recognize the human rights cherished in America, which the Constitution was conceived to protect, and which Americans have sacrificed their lives to defend, are values cherished in Judeo-Christian tradition.
ADL's reply to McCains reply, in full:
Thank you for your quick response to my letter expressing concern over your interview with Beliefnet in which you referred to the United States as a "Christian nation."
We welcome your clarification that you were "asserting nothing more controversial than that you recognize the human rights cherished in America.....are values cherished in the Judeo-Christian tradition." Nevertheless, we are disappointed that you did not expressly retract your statement that "the Constitution established the United States of America as a Christian nation." Unfortunately, that phrase is often exploited by those who do not fully appreciate the importance of our Constitution's guarantee of religious freedom and equality which you embrace.
We hope that you will express your commitment to our pluralistic values in more inclusive language in the future.
Keypoint per ADL's second letter and press release of October 2, 2007 on this:
In response, ADL welcomed Sen. McCain's clarification, but added, "Nevertheless, we are deeply disappointed that you did not expressly retract your statement that "the Constitution established the United States of America as a Christian nation."
In other words, McCain equivocated and danced around the issue... Obviously McCain wants to have it both ways, depending on his audience. McCain's answer still left him claiming the constitution establishes the U.S. as a Christian Nation. Whether he really believes this or whether it is because of his need to pander to the Christianist Right is a valid question somebody ought to ask... CNN? Fox, NBC, Timah? Anybody?
So let us compare and contrast:
- Obama responded with a disavowal of somebody else's remarks and behavior to the ADL's satisfaction.
- McCain did not respond, clarify or disavow his own hateful and dishonest statments to the ADL's satisfaction.
Which one is the media still talking about?
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P.S.: What the ADL says about themselves:
The Anti-Defamation League was founded in 1913 "to stop the defamation of the Jewish people and to secure justice and fair treatment to all." Now the nation's premier civil rights/human relations agency, ADL fights anti-Semitism and all forms of bigotry, defends democratic ideals and protects civil rights for all.
A leader in the development of materials, programs and services, ADL builds bridges of communication, understanding and respect among diverse groups, carrying out its mission through a network of 30 Regional and Satellite Offices in the United States and abroad.
A 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, ADL neither supports nor opposes any candidate for political office.
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