While we know that many Americans are pleased with the end of DADT, President Barack Obama is still not very popular with much of the country…and now there’s a new group that’s taking issue with him!
According to new reports, many Jewish Americans are NOT happy with Obama because of his May speech, in which “he suggested that Israel return to pre-1967 borders with land swaps agreed upon by Israelis and Palestinians.”
Following that speech, Obama met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who made it clear to the President that Israel would NEVER return to pre-1967 borders.
Before Obama’s May speech, he had 68% approval from Jewish Americans, but then that number dropped to 60% in June…and NOW it’s all the way down to 54%. Yikes!
Here’s what executive director of the Republican Jewish Coalition Matt Brooks had to say about it:
“Because of the failed policies and the harsh criticism as it relates to Israel, (Obama has) got a real problem with Jewish voters across the country.”
“I’m confident that Republicans will continue to make inroads in 2012 in the Jewish community…as Jewish voters move away from the Democratic Party.”
And here’s what Obama campaign adviser Alan Solow had to say about all of this:
“We…need to fight back against those misrepresentations and clarify the record. We’ll go through some ups and downs as events occur, but I think in the end, our belief is that his percentage of the Jewish vote in 2012 will be very similar to what it was in 2008.”
And here’s executive director of the nonpartisan American Jewish Committee David Harris on whether or not Obama will have the Jewish vote in the upcoming election:
“They need to tell the story better. Don’t take your Jewish base for granted.”
“Jews are multi-issue voters. The notion they are single-issue voters is simply wrong. [Jewish voters] want to have a comfort level they want to believe in their kishkas, in their gut, that the person gets Israel, understands it, grasps why Israel is important to the United States.”
What do U think? Has Obama lost the Jewish vote? Or will he still have the support of Jewish Americans in the 2012 election???
[Image via WENN.]