The Battle for the Jewish Vote

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Jews, just 4 percent of America-s electorate, have been reliably Democratic for generations. Though George Bush won just 19 percent in the presidential election four years ago, Republicans claim they can get enough of the Jewish vote to make the difference in important swing states like Florida, Ohio, and Pennsylvania. In a Washington ballroom this spring, the potent Israeli lobby gave Bush 24 standing ovations and repeatedly shouted, -Four more years.- With John Kerry-s positions on Israel much the same as those of the President, what about social issues, women-s rights and the economy? Are Jews divided about the war in Iraq? Are they worried about the influence of evangelical Christians? We hear some lively debate from activists, an expert in Jewish voting patterns, and representatives of national Jewish organizations on both sides of the aisle. Making News: New Surge in Fighting in Iraq Today-s papers are full of news from the Iraqi city of Najaf, where a two-month truce has been broken by heavy fighting. One of the few American reporters who-ve been there is Scott Baldauf of the Christian Science Monitor. He-s back in Baghdad after a night between the extremes of bullets whistling overhead and Shiite hospitality. Reporter's Notebook: The Economy, Slow Job Growth and the Presidential Campaign After weeks of relatively positive economic news, oil prices have shot up and the stock market-s shaky. Today, President Bush told a conference of minority journalists that -economic growth is strong and getting stronger.- But 1.1 million jobs have been lost since he took office, and today-s announcement of a 32,000-job gain last month was a big disappointment. BusinessWeek economist Michael Mandel considers the impact on the upcoming presidential race.
Jews, just 4 percent of America-s electorate, have been reliably Democratic for generations. Though George Bush won just 19 percent in the presidential election four years ago, Republicans claim they can get enough of the Jewish vote to make the difference in important swing states like Florida, Ohio, and Pennsylvania. In a Washington ballroom this spring, the potent Israeli lobby gave Bush 24 standing ovations and repeatedly shouted, -Four more years.- With John Kerry-s positions on Israel much the same as those of the President, what about social issues, women-s rights and the economy? Are Jews divided about the war in Iraq? Are they worried about the influence of evangelical Christians? We hear some lively debate from activists, an expert in Jewish voting patterns, and representatives of national Jewish organizations on both sides of the aisle.
  • Making News: New Surge in Fighting in Iraq
    Today-s papers are full of news from the Iraqi city of Najaf, where a two-month truce has been broken by heavy fighting. One of the few American reporters who-ve been there is Scott Baldauf of the Christian Science Monitor. He-s back in Baghdad after a night between the extremes of bullets whistling overhead and Shiite hospitality.
  • Reporter's Notebook: The Economy, Slow Job Growth and the Presidential Campaign
    After weeks of relatively positive economic news, oil prices have shot up and the stock market-s shaky. Today, President Bush told a conference of minority journalists that -economic growth is strong and getting stronger.- But 1.1 million jobs have been lost since he took office, and today-s announcement of a 32,000-job gain last month was a big disappointment. BusinessWeek economist Michael Mandel considers the impact on the upcoming presidential race.

Bush re-election campaign

Kerry presidential campaign

American Jewish Committee

Bureau of Labor Statistics on July employment

Credits

Host:

Warren Olney