The Jewish Vote

We are an extremely tiny minority, comprising just 2.7% of the U.S. population and 0.2% of the world population.

But the good news about that, at least in the minds of our parents and grandparents, is that our numbers are too small to have any real impact on the larger society, and even more importantly, that the larger society would just leave us alone to live our lives in peace.

Wow, were we ever wrong about that.

We spent last Sunday in the backyard of the home of Scott and Freda Englander of Woodmere as part of a NORPAC-LI event to meet and discuss the important issues of the day with both Congressman Mike Lawler, who is running for re-election in District 17 in Rockland County, and Anthony D’Esposito, who is running for re-election in our home District 4 in the Five Towns and surrounding areas. On Tuesday night in Lawrence, we met former NY State Assemblyman, Mike LiPetri, who was in the Five Towns for a fundraiser and campaign meeting. He was chosen by the Nassau County GOP to be their candidate in NY’s 3rd congressional district this election cycle in a bid to unseat Democratic incumbent Tom Suozzi, who retook the Congressional seat he once occupied in a special election against Nassau County Legislator, Mazi Pilip.

That election came about, as you may recall, due to the wild and crazy antics of George Santos, who was elected legally and properly to serve that district in the House. But then, because of his fundraising violations along with a whole host of other illegalities, the House, led by Republicans, ultimately expelled Santos in 2023. This reduced the Republican majority by one seat. If Santos was a Democrat, I believe they would have allowed him to serve out his term so that they had his vote, and then primary him before the next election. It was a mistake to let him go mid-term.

Suozzi is popular in his district and is a strong and uncompromising supporter of Israel in the House. He has close ties to the Jewish community here on Long Island, but this year it is vitally important that the Republican Party maintains control of the House of Representatives, and that they increase the small majority they currently maintain.

We learned a lot from these two first-term Members of Congress—Lawler and D’Esposito—but most of all we learned that the future policies of the great United States are unquestionably dependent on how Jews in these districts are going to vote come November 5th.

These two Members of Congress, Mike Lawler and Anthony D’Esposito, represent all that is good and right with our country, and they have to deal with a vicious left-wing opposition that has specifically targeted their seats and earmarked tens of millions of dollars to turn those seats Democratic.

As an observer, what impressed me most about these two congressmen was their great grasp of the issues without consulting any notes or fumbling over the facts, but by addressing these important matters without any hesitation and with uncompromising conviction.

Lawler and D’Esposito, who are not Jewish, but represent large Jewish communities in their districts, are among the greatest and most ardent supporters of Israel in Congress. Yet, despite their best efforts on our behalf and on behalf of Israel, these two relatively young Representatives have to do battle with Senator Chuck Schumer, who you may recall used to parade during Jewish events claiming to be a “Shomer Israel,” or a Guardian of the State of Israel. Given his dismal performance, his invitations to every dinner and melavah malkah have waned these last few years.

This is the same Senator Schumer, the great “Shomer Israel,” who calls for the downfall of Prime Minister Netanyahu while Israel is fighting for its very life against Hamas and Hezbollah, and calls for Israel to hold new elections as missiles rain down from seven different terror-controlled states on a daily basis.

Schumer, a Jewish Brooklyn native, is an advocate of the Democratic Party narrative that calls for a two-state solution, which we know translates to the destruction of the Jewish state. My estimation is that Schumer has no issue with a state for us in that part of the world. What really irks Chuck and makes him uncomfortable is the fact that the state is Jewish.

Back in May, Congressman Lawler, whose grasp of the issues is extremely impressive, introduced a bipartisan Antisemitism Awareness Act, a bill that will help address anti-Semitic sentiment and actions on college campuses, which has been rising across the nation for years, primarily after the vicious Hamas terror attack on October 7, 2023. To counter the tolerance of such activity by college administrators, the law would, in part, call for the withholding of federal funds to these universities, which receive billions of dollars from the Federal Government.

The bill passed the House by a vote of 320-91, but Chuck Schumer refuses to bring it to the Senate floor for a vote because he wants to placate the leftists in Congress and around the country who he fears might not vote for Kamala Harris if the bill becomes law.

And that is Chuck Schumer, the “Shomer Israel.” The Irish-Italian Catholic, Mike Lawler, is more of a Shomer Israel than Chuck Schumer. That’s a tremendous credit to Mike Lawler, but a terrible shame for Schumer and for us, who pretend not to see the utter deviousness with which Chuck operates.

Coincidentally and even shockingly, Senator Schumer is now writing a book (for which he certainly received a handsome advance) on the subject of combatting antisemitism. It’s almost reminiscent of former NY Governor Cuomo’s book on how to deal with a pandemic when his policies resulted in the deaths of 15,000 mostly elderly New Yorkers in nursing homes.

Ironically, Schumer—who sent clear signals this year that it is okay, good, and even acceptable to oppose the democratically elected leader of Israel, a stance that fueled the fire of Jew-hatred on American college campuses—is going to tell readers how best to combat Jew-hatred.

In all likelihood, if a friend or neighbor asks you the personal question of who you are voting for in the upcoming election, it is important to note that if you reside in Nassau or Rockland Counties, you are in an area of New York that has the highest concentration of Jews in the U.S.

So, let’s break it down a bit more. Your vote counts—that’s right, you and your eligible voting family members. You, whose parents and grandparents fled Europe, often escaping by the skin of their teeth, often the only survivors of large families looking for a place to quietly rebuild their lives, and there are many families like that today in both Nassau and Rockland Counties. And now, in a few weeks, the future of the United States is largely dependent on your votes, which can hopefully help determine the future direction of American foreign policy, particularly as it impacts Israel.

It is vital that you pay even closer attention to how important your vote is leading up to November 5th. Kamala Harris is one of weakest and most unqualified candidates the Democratic Party has ever placed in the position to be President of the United States. But half the country still supports her, and that includes a majority of Jews, even here in New York, where the largest Jewish community exists outside of Israel.

We will present our presidential endorsement at a later date. For now, the emphasis is on the importance of our Jewish community here in the New York-New Jersey area going out to vote on Election Day.

Though it is not widely publicized, Donald Trump has an important edge over VP Harris. In 2020, polls showed Mr. Trump receiving just 8% of the African-American vote. At the end of the process, he received 18% of that vote. Polls today show that this year, in just a few weeks, Trump is set to receive 25% of the African-American vote.

In 2020, Trump received 27% of the Jewish vote nationally. Polls this year are showing Trump garnering almost 40% of the Jewish vote. We should take this matter very seriously. In 1984, Ronald Reagan received 39% of the Jewish vote. Kamala Harris and her Democratic allies in Congress would like to withhold arms supplies to Israel so that they cannot defend themselves and win these wars against their terrorist enemies.

The Jewish vote packs a lot of punch, this year more than ever. n

Read more of Larry Gordon’s articles at 5TJT.com. Follow 5 Towns Jewish Times on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter for updates and live videos. Comments, questions, and suggestions are welcome at 5TJT.com and on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.