Why do the Jews like Obama, the Muslim?

visionary · Oct 2, 2012

2012 AJC Survey of American Jewish Opinion - AJC: Global Jewish Advocacy

It looks like the Jewish population are going to vote for Obama for another term. My question is why? The poll indicated that it is for economic reasons, but statistics of Obama's four year term has not revealed any economic recovery and his promises of continuing in the direction he has been taking are not healthy for a nation.

Gxg (G²) · Oct 2, 2012

visionary said:
2012 AJC Survey of American Jewish Opinion - AJC: Global Jewish Advocacy

It looks like the Jewish population are going to vote for Obama for another term. My question is why? The poll indicated that it is for economic reasons, but statistics of Obama's four year term has not revealed any economic recovery and his promises of continuing in the direction he has been taking are not healthy for a nation.

President Obama is not Muslim and other Muslims have noted that for a long time. There was more discussed on that within the thread entitled Faith & Honor: Why President Obama is a Christian and NOT Muslim according to Hearsay.

As it concerns economic issues, I must say that much of it is often laid at his feet when he never had anything to do with the condition of the economy and often fought to make economic progress on many issues--especially as it concerns alternative energy ( #259 #262 and #265 ). President Obama and his plans involve the dynamics of Built-In Delay inherent in their development in order for them to succedd)---and I thought the article was on point. It's called "The Incomplete Geatness of Barack Obama" . Although I have things the president upsets me on, I think it's off whenever things are given to him/ascribed to his economic views that are not really his. He has indeed done A LOT of good things (much of it under the radar and not publicized often because it's not as sensational, more here, here, here, , etc).

As another said best in a very excellent article discussing the incomplete greatness of Barack Obama:

When the poll’s results were released on January 18, even the most seasoned White House staffers, who know the president faces a tough battle for reelection, must have spit up their coffee: more than half the respondents—52 percent—said the president has accomplished “not very much” or “little or nothing.”

It is often said that there are no right or wrong answers in opinion polling, but in this case, there is an empirically right answer—one chosen by only 12 percent of the poll’s respondents. The answer is that Obama has accomplished “a great deal.”

Measured in sheer legislative tonnage, what Obama got done in his first two years is stunning. Health care reform. The takeover and turnaround of the auto industry. The biggest economic stimulus in history. Sweeping new regulations of Wall Street. A tough new set of consumer protections on the credit card industry. A vast expansion of national service. Net neutrality. The greatest increase in wilderness protection in fifteen years. A revolutionary reform to student aid. Signing the New START treaty with Russia. The ending of “don’t ask, don’t tell.”

Even over the past year, when he was bogged down in budget fights with the Tea Party-controlled GOP House, Obama still managed to squeeze out a few domestic policy victories, including a $1.2 trillion deficit reduction deal and the most sweeping overhaul of food safety laws in more than seventy years. More impressively, on the foreign policy front he ended the war in Iraq, began the drawdown in Afghanistan, helped to oust Gaddafi in Libya and usher out Mubarak in Egypt, orchestrated new military and commercial alliances as a hedge against China, and tightened sanctions against Iran over its nukes.

Oh, and he shifted counterterrorism strategies to target Osama bin Laden and then ordered the risky raid that killed him.
That Obama has done all this while also steering the country out of what might have been a second Great Depression would seem to have made him already, just three years into his first term, a serious candidate for greatness. (See Obama’s Top 50 Accomplishments.)

And yet a solid majority of Americans nevertheless thinks the president has not accomplished much. Why? There are plenty of possible explanations. The most obvious is the economy. People are measuring Obama’s actions against the actual conditions of their lives and livelihoods, which, over the past three years, have not gotten materially better. He failed miserably at his grandiose promise to change the culture of Washington (see “Clinton’s Third Term&#8221

. His highest-profile legislative accomplishments were object lessons in the ugly side of compromise. In negotiations, he came off to Democrats as naïvely trusting, and to Republicans as obstinately partisan, leaving the impression that he could have achieved more if only he had been less conciliatory—or more so, depending on your point of view. And for such an obviously gifted orator, he has been surprisingly inept at explaining to average Americans what he’s fighting for or trumpeting what he’s achieved.

In short, when judging Obama’s record so far, conservatives measure him against their fears, liberals against their hopes, and the rest of us against our pocketbooks. But if you measure Obama against other presidents—arguably the more relevant yardstick—a couple of things come to light. Speaking again in terms of sheer tonnage, Obama has gotten more done than any president since LBJ. But the effects of some of those achievements have yet to be felt by most Americans, often by design. Here, too, Obama is in good historical company.

The greatest achievements of some of our most admired presidents were often unrecognized during their years in office, and in many cases could only be appreciated with the passing of time. When FDR created Social Security in 1935, the program offered meager benefits that were delayed for years, excluded domestic workers and other heavily black professions (a necessary compromise to win southern votes), and was widely panned by liberals as a watered-down sellout. Only in subsequent decades, as benefits were raised and expanded, did Social Security become the country’s most beloved government program. Roosevelt’s first proposal for a GI Bill for returning World War II veterans was also relatively stingy, and while its benefits grew as it moved through Congress, its aim remained focused on keeping returning veterans from flooding the labor market. Only later was it apparent that the program was fueling the growth of America’s first mass middle class. When Harry Truman took office at the dawn of the Cold War, he chose the policy of containment over a more aggressive “rollback” of communism, and then he built the institutions to carry it out. He left office with a 32 percent public approval rating. Only decades later would it become clear that he made the right choice.

Of course, much could happen that might tarnish Obama’s record in the eyes of history. The economy is still extremely weak, and could stay that way or relapse into recession; Afghanistan could go south in a big way; or Obama could simply fail to win reelection, and then watch as his legacy gets systematically dismantled at a time when most ordinary Americans still don’t know its worth. This would be the most crushing blow, because a number of Obama’s biggest accomplishments function, like FDR’s, with a built-in delay. Some are structured to have modest effects now but major ones later. Others emerged in a crimped and compromised form that, if history is a guide, may well be filled out and strengthened down the road. Still others are quite impressive now but create potential for even greater change in the future. At this point, it’s hard to get a sense of these possibilities without lifting the hood and looking deeply into the actual policies and programs. Hence, there’s no reason to think that today’s voters would be aware of them, but every reason to think historians will.

visionary · Oct 2, 2012

http://www.gallup.com/poll/142700/muslims-give-obama-highest-job-approval-mormons-lowest.aspx

Muslims like him.. "under Islamic law, the Muslim world sees Barack Obama as a Muslim, as a son of Islam": according to Sharia, if one's father is Muslim, one automatically becomes Muslim. Muslims are convinced that Obama is a "secret" Muslim. In a Forbes article, "My Muslim President Obama: Why members of the faith see him as one of the flock," writer Asma Gull Hasan elaborates:

ince Election Day, I have been part of more and more conversations with Muslims in which it was either offhandedly agreed that Obama is Muslim or enthusiastically blurted out. In commenting on our new president, "I have to support my fellow Muslim brother,"

http://www.forbes.com/2009/02/24/muslim-barack-obama-opinions-contributors_islamic_president.html

Gxg (G²) · Oct 2, 2012

visionary said:
Really.. In August, 2006 US Senator Barack Obama [D-IL] made a special trip to visit a special man in Kenya. The man's name was Raila Amolo Odinga. He is the head of the National Muslim Leaders Forum [NAMLEF] in Kenya. The political party he heads is called the Orange Democratic Movement [ODM]although there is definitely nothing democratic about his political party of NAMLEF. The ODM is dedicated to overthrowing the legitimate democratic government of Kenya. Odinga is not really concerned how he achieves his objective. It matters little to him if he assumes power through a free electionor by revolution. But, by hook or crook, he is determined to become the president of Kenya. If he succeeds, he will be president for life and Kenya will become another Afghanistan.

He is more than that... He is following in the footsteps of someone he looks up to.

One, reference as it concerns evidence/context. Two, Bush and other presidents also met with Muslim leaders around the world. That in and of itself doesn't make one "Muslim." As said before, the President has also met with Jewish leaders, many of which are zealous for their views...but in doing so, he doesn't become Jewish nor does every action negatively done by them get ascribed to them simply because he met with them

There's never a need for people to do guilt-by-association tatics when trying to critique a presidential figure. And that goes to the larger issue of ignoring what the President has said DIRECTLY when pointing to Christ/his faith.

yonah_mishael · Oct 2, 2012

“Muslims like him, so he must be bad.” That’s not exactly sensible, is it?

visionary · Oct 2, 2012

It doesn't explain why Jews would support him.

xDenax · Oct 2, 2012

I am not a fan of Obama. I do not plan to vote for Obama. In fact, on Friday I will be meeting Gary Johnson, the Libertarian candidate who I've known would be getting my vote for some time now. I don't know why people vote for Obama. You need to ask them if you are curious.

That being said, Obama is not a Muslim. That is false. Why would you want to repeat something that is false? Do you think that makes you look credible and knowledgeable? So Muslims in the United States like Obama. So what?

visionary · Oct 2, 2012

Time will tell where Obama's heart is...

Day of Prayer at the White House

what was Allowed?
what was not Not allowed?

Check the records... what is your first clue?

yonah_mishael · Oct 2, 2012

visionary said:
Time will tell where Obama's heart is...

Day of Prayer at the White House

what was Allowed?
what was not Not allowed?

Check the records... what is your first clue?

The White House should not have a day of prayer. Separation of Church and State - all the way.

bibledoctor · Oct 2, 2012

I think they should set aside a day on the universal calendar for -non-religious- festival day.

Gxg (G²) · Oct 2, 2012

visionary said:
Time will tell where Obama's heart is...

Day of Prayer at the White House

what was Allowed?
what was not Not allowed?

Check the records... what is your first clue?

Focusing on a Day of Prayer wouldn't be an issue when seeing what was done recently at the National Prayer Breakfast (seen here, here, here , here , here and here / here) where he continually pointed to Christ as being Lord/Savior of all and the one to look to. For other places to investigate, one can go here to Obama's Fascinating Interview with Cathleen Falsani or here at Barack Obama: Evangelical-in-Chief? How Christians might think about the President's faith.

As it is, it's interesting to see the ways that people on all sides---be it Christians or Muslims---have often taken issue with President Obama. Just came across this recently and enjoyed the debate on the issue (as it has Michael Eric Dyson bringing a lot of clarity on the issue of why Obama has tried to reach across the isle to do work):

Best black vs white debate on youtube - REP DAT

And as President Obama and others have noted:

Obama : Christianity
TD Jakes, Ron Martin defends Obama
President Obama: 'I'm a Christian by choice' - Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Bishop T.D. Jakes Wants Rev. Franklin Graham To Apologize To Pres Obama For Questioning His Faith

Obama claims to believe in CHristianity and has recieved encouragement/council from other Christians (i.e. Rick Warren, T.D Jakes, Jim Wallis, Joshua DuBois, Joel Hunter, etc) that he looks to as mentors for many of the things he does...them being apart of his spiritual advisory council.

Not surprising that Obama has worked with Jakes Not so long ago, he led an early morning prayer service for President Barack Obama at St. John’s Church in Washington, D.C. – not a new role for him as he has advised other presidents as well. In his book Decision Points, George W. Bush described Jakes as “a kind of man who puts faith into action

President Obama has shared multiple times where he claims to be a Christian rather than for other religions (even though he also made known where he respects other religions/appreciates them in their contributions.....his views being more so an Inclusivist viewpoint that acknowledges common grace in other camps). People have often tried the claim "He's Muslim!!!" due to his father's background and his comments on honoring Muslims, depsite the fact that believers in the OT did the same thing when it other cultures and he has made clear that finding things within other religions that are respectable doesn't mean he thinks it's greater than Christ---and doing no different than others did in the scriptures( Genesis 18:1-3, Genesis 23:6-13 Genesis 33:2-4 Genesis 48:11-13 , Exodus 18:6-8 , etc).

I Corinthians 12:2
I want you to know that no one who is speaking by the Spirit of God says, “Jesus be cursed,” and no one can say, “Jesus is Lord,” except by the Holy Spirit

Obvious is the fact that people with the spirit of God don't always make the best choices and anyone reading through the books of I-II Kings (i.e. King Asa, King Uzziah, Solomon, etc) and other texts of scripture sees the same principle in action....but declaring Christ as Lord is plainly something one says by the inspiration of the Spirit. The same is possible, IMHO, with President Obama. Multiple times he has surrounded himself as Christians as the people he seeks council from and has noted his development of faith in Christ long before he was president. Obama's Call to Renewal speech on faith and politics from 2006 (which made others on the Left feel their feathers ruffle ) is something that caught the attention of many way before the 2008 election...with it being pointed out often by Joshua Debois, who is head of White House Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships — including economic recovery and poverty reduction, abortion reduction, responsible fatherhood, and global interfaith dialogue.

For others, it seems to be the case that man is a highly decieved/apostate Christian worthy of the treatment in Jude 1:23 which gives caution for how to help certain people decieved (and I support that one for the most part)--whereas others believe he's a Christian who is still maturing since he didn't have a lot of knowledge before hand (as noted by Christianity Today here), with a tendency to often make very BAD alliances while also doing a lot of righteous things (similar to the many kings in II Chronicles with Judah who often were noting for loving the Lord at many points except in certain areas-----King Jehoshaphat being a great example when seeing his life in action, the ways he sought to bring reform and yet was known for often joining up with the wrong leaders in Israel- II Chronicles 17-20 ).

Regardless of the differing stances others have on him, what is clear is that Muslims do not see the President as a Muslim and it's a falsehood to say such.

Gxg (G²) · Oct 2, 2012

visionary said:
It doesn't explain why Jews would support him.

Seeing that he has given enormous amounts of funding in the form of economic aid, especially as it pertains to weapons, it's not surprising to see why many Jewish people would support/aid him.

Again, President Obama has already been funding Israel via weapons and funding throughout his term, it would be foolish for anyone remotely trying to claim that the President would rather support the Arab world rather than Israel...especially seeing how he has already spoken against it MULTIPLE times and done warfare with others in Arab lands that are terrorists. Even Israel's president spoke to Obama on the issue in support multiple times--with Palestinians being upset at President Obama..

President Barack Obama signed legislation to bolster U.S. military cooperation with Israel and highlighted release of $70 million for the Jewish state's missile defense ...and he consistently spoken out against the enemies of Israel when it comes to harrassing them. Where others often seem mad is that he isn't of the mindset that one must demonize all other Middle-Eastern countries as "terrorists" in order to support Israel since his mindset is for PEOPLE, be it Israelis or Non-Israelis, to live and to ensure that others keeping that from happening are not allowed to continue on. One of the reasons he has been very tough on Iran.

For reference:

Obama Stands Up for Israel in the UN
Obama Warns Palestinians: 'No Short Cut'
President Barack Obama supports Israel 2011 AIPAC Speech
President Obama Opposes UN Vote On Palestinian Statehood

Gxg (G²) · Oct 2, 2012

visionary said:
It doesn't explain why Jews would support him.

The military funding he gave to Israel throughout his term is something I've often wondered whether others really keep up with whenever making claims that he didn't support Israel.

As said elsewhere in NY Times:

U.S. Quietly Supplies Israel With Bunker-Busting Bombs - NYTimes ...

Sep 23, 2011 WASHINGTON The Obama administration has quietly supplied Israel with bombs capable of destroying buried targets, like terrorists arms caches or perhaps sites in Iran suspected of being part of that nations nuclear weapons program, American officials said Friday.

The administrations transfer of bunker-busting bombs, first reported in an online article by Newsweek, began in 2009. American officials who confirmed the shipments spoke on the condition of anonymity, because they were not authorized to discuss the matter publicly. They declined to comment on the number of bombs that had been supplied to Israel or on their capabilities.

Israel had sought this class of weapons for many years. In 2005, the Bush administration notified Congress of a pending transfer to Israel of bombs designed to destroy buried targets. This proposed sale will contribute to the foreign policy and national security of the United States by helping to improve the security of a friendly country, a news release from the Defense Security Cooperation Agency stated.

Subsequent notifications of plans to sell Israel different models of bunker-busting weapons were sent to Congress by the agency again in 2007 and 2008.

But the weapons were not given to Israel at the time. Pentagon officials were frustrated that Israel had transferred military technology to China. And there were deep concerns that if the United States supplied bunker-busting bombs to Israel, it might be viewed as having tacitly endorsed an attack on Iran. In the interim, Israel developed its own bunker-busting bomb, officials said, but the American variants were viewed as more cost-effective.

There've been many who've noted that it often seems President Obama has been betraying his Progressive base that helped him in the election (many seeing how he has been against civil liberties and doing the exact same things the previous president did in with bad policies)---but as it concerns Israel, the man has seemed to be very consistent in helping it. Also, as another wisely noted on what it means to be "Pro-Israel" when comparing President Obama and Romney:

Why shouldn't Israel be a "partisan issue" in American elections? If Democrats and Republicans have differing views on an issue, why shouldn't they try to "score political points" off of them?

That is what they do on every other issue. Why should Israel be above or beyond politics? U.S. taxpayers send more money to Israel than any other country and millions of Americans care deeply about Israel's fate. What makes it not a legitimate issue?

Unfortunately, however, the two parties do not have differing views on Israel. Both candidates and both parties support the Netanyahu government's positions on Iran, the Palestinians, Hamas and pretty much everything else. Sure, Mitt Romney went overboard in Jerusalem by saying that on critical matters like Iran we should defer to the wishes of Israel (rather than decide these issues exclusively based on U.S. interests) but that is what successive administrations have been doing for years. It is certainly what the Obama administration has done. Obama just doesn't proclaim it while in Israel's capital.

That is why Israel's hawkish Minister of Defense Ehud Barak says that Obama has been the president most supportive of Israel in its 64 year history. President Shimon Peres, who has played a part in that history since the beginning, says pretty much the same thing.
There is no indication that Romney would be any different.

Sure, his statements in Israel indicate an over-the-top quality that Obama's lack. Nor would Obama have made that invidious comparison of Israeli and Palestinian cultures. But Romney isn't president. If he should be elected, there is little doubt that his policies would be virtually identical to those of Obama, or Bush, or Clinton, etc., except for the Muslim-bashing elements that are the specialty of some of his neocon aides and his fundraiser Sheldon Adelson.

Romney can be no more "pro-Israel" than Obama because Obama simply does everything Israel asks for: from raising aid levels, to accepting Israeli settlements, to vetoing every resolution Israel wants vetoed at the United Nations, to piling Iran sanction on top of Iran sanction (while leaving the possibility of war on the table), to exempting Israel from budget cuts that will affect every other program in the budget. What more can Romney do? Move our capital to Jerusalem?

In short, the whole GOP argument that Obama is not pro-Israel enough is hogwash.

Where I differ from Americans For Peace Now and other pro-Israel organizations is that I wish candidates would make Israel a political issue, because the politically expedient status quo policies both parties endorse don't advance U.S. interests or Israel's.

I wish one of the two parties would say that the United States will do everything in its power to prevent Iran's development of nuclear weapons through diplomacy -- and not by means of a war that would result in needless deaths and crash the world economy. I wish one of the two parties would say that the United State will promote Israeli-Palestinian negotiations that include representatives of Israel, the Palestinian Authority and Gaza with only one condition: that all sides foreswear violence. I wish one of the two parties would commit our country to serving as an honest broker in the Middle East rather than as "Israel's lawyer," as former Clinton-era negotiator Aaron Miller memorably put it.

Of course, I don't expect any of that to happen -- not so long as both parties seem more dedicated to impressing some donors to defending U.S. interests or Israel's. It certainly is not happening in this campaign, which has already become a race to demonstrate who can be more effusive about Binyamin Netanyahu's policies.
Something's got to give. Israel's survival is at stake (whether Netanyahu understands that or not). The Palestinians are being squeezed to death, particularly in Gaza. And a war with Iran that would make the Iraq war look like a summer outing could be ignited at any time.

All these things should be issues in our presidential campaign, not simply opportunities for pandering. Unfortunately it won't happen this year. On the Middle East, it's tweedle dum and tweedle dee.
When Democrats say Romney is "anti-Israel" or Republicans say Obama is, don't believe them. If "pro-Israel" means following Binyamin Netanyahu's lead on all matters relating to the Middle East, they are one and the same. And that is the pity.

Gxg (G²) · Oct 2, 2012

xDenax said:
I am not a fan of Obama. I do not plan to vote for Obama. In fact, on Friday I will be meeting Gary Johnson, the Libertarian candidate who I've known would be getting my vote for some time now.

Gary Johnson is an excellent 3rd party cannidate

GuardianShua · Oct 2, 2012

visionary said:
2012 AJC Survey of American Jewish Opinion - AJC: Global Jewish Advocacy

It looks like the Jewish population are going to vote for Obama for another term. My question is why? The poll indicated that it is for economic reasons, but statistics of Obama's four year term has not revealed any economic recovery and his promises of continuing in the direction he has been taking are not healthy for a nation.

Because we live in a global economy, we will do better when the rest of the world is doing better. No matter who is in office.

xDenax · Oct 2, 2012

yonah_mishael said:
The White House should not have a day of prayer. Separation of Church and State - all the way.

Totally agree.

mmksparbud · Oct 2, 2012

Now I am really confused--I've been seeing commercials on TV presented by some Jewish organization, saying that they are against Obama.---Oh, well, I plan on writing in Daffy Duck.

yonah_mishael · Oct 2, 2012

mmksparbud said:
Now I am really confused--I've been seeing commercials on TV presented by some Jewish organization, saying that they are against Obama.---Oh, well, I plan on writing in Daffy Duck.

Two Jews – three opinions. There are certainly Jews who oppose Obama (ChavaK on this forum is among them), but the majority of American Jews are pro-Democrat and pro-Obama.

ChavaK · Oct 2, 2012

yonah_mishael said:
Two Jews – three opinions. There are certainly Jews who oppose Obama (ChavaK on this forum is among them), but the majority of American Jews are pro-Democrat and pro-Obama.

I find that most Jews are not religious, and are liberal.
I find that most Jews that I know who are religious are conservative and not-Obama supporters. I am proudly in that group

I actually have much more in common with Conservative Christians politically than I do with secular Jews.

While Chabad generally does not discuss politics in public, we actually had a nice discussion in one their succahs on Monday.
Not an Obama supporter in the crowd.

yonah_mishael · Oct 2, 2012

ChavaK said:
I find that most Jews are not religious, and are liberal.
I find that most Jews that I know who are religious are conservative and not-Obama supporters. I am proudly in that group
I actually have much more in common with Conservative Christians politically than I do with secular Jews.

While Chabad generally does not discuss politics in public, we actually had a nice discussion in one their succahs on Monday.
Not an Obama supporter in the crowd.

Precisely. Yet, as you said, the majority of Jews in America are liberal, and its true that the majority of American (liberal) Jews support Obama for one reason or another. Im an Obama supporter in addition to a liberal.

Why do the Jews like Obama, the Muslim?

Your God is my God... Ruth said, so say I.

Pilgrim/Monastic on the Road to God (Psalm 84:1-7)

Your God is my God... Ruth said, so say I.

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הֱיֵה קודם כל בן אדם

Your God is my God... Ruth said, so say I.

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