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THE daidlt JEWISH NEWS
Poor Marks for Jimmy Carter in Lasky Analysis
stop in Egypt was an-
nounced, • denied, an-
nounced again, and they
To say that "Jimmy Car-
ter, the Man and the Myth"
(Marek Publishers) by Vic-
tor Lasky is critical of the
President would be a gener-
ous judgment. The author,
who is well known as a polit-
ical analyst, emphasizes the
shortcomings and pulls no
punches.
Carter is portrayed as the
man_ of many promises,
who was elected because the
voters wanted the opposite
of a Richard Nixon.
Even after w;lat had been
described as his successes in
the Middle East delib-
erations, Lasky finds that
Carter is "a politician of
limited and uncertain ta-
lents, a well-meaning man
whose power derives far
more from the office he
locked into that the qual-
ities of personal leadership
he has been able to exert."
The Carter blunders
are enumerated by
Lasky. He mentions as an
example the inflammat-
ory remarks of Billy Car-
ter as having embarras-
sed the nation.
Lasky's review of the
President's position in the
Israeli-Egyptian peace
negotiations points to an
early pro-Sadat attitude. In
the analysis of the early
(Copyright 1979, JTA, Inc.)
The papers report one of
the big corporations has de-
veloped an ekctrical device
for motors, which, it is
claimed, will save a million
barrels of oil a day.
That is the right ap-
proach. We must find ways
of saving gasoline. There
must be any number of such
ways. A good friend of ours
showed up the other day .. .
I hadn't seen him for some
time and I was very glad to
see him, but there was a
queerish look in his face.
"Is there any trouble?" I
asked.
"Trouble," he said,
"why should I have trou-
ble"
"But there is something
you seem to have on your
mind," I said.
"Well, yes," he granted, "i
have found a way to save
one-seventh of the world's
oil."
"That's quite a lot," I said.
"What have you invented?"
"No invention," he
said. "It's all very simple.
Just let the world keep
Shabbes."
If people, he said, didn't
ride their cars on Shabbes or
do any cooking, the savings
on that day would be one-
seventh.
"As a matter of fact,' Car-
ter went on, 'the person who
is in charge of our issues
analysis - is Stuart
Eizenstat, who happens to
be Jewish and who I might
say is a very strong propo-
nent of a strong state of Is-
rael. So I'm the ultimate one
duly took place. Following
that hurried Jan. 4, 1979,
visit to Sadat, the President
announced, in effect, he had
been converted to the Egyp-
tian point of view. That, at
least, was the implication of
his remark that his views
and those of the Egyptian
leader were 'identical.
VICTOR LASKY
views, in relation to Prime
Minister Menahem Begin
and President Anwar
Sadat, Lasky goes into some
details and to the criticisms
of the President there are
these allusions:
"In the weeks following
the Sadat visit to
Jerusalem, Carter could not
resist getting involved. Get-
ting involved to such a point
that confusion reigned. Just
before taking off on his
world trip in the dying days
of 1977 — a trip which, in
retrospect, made no sense —
the President reacted to a
complicated set of peace
proposals from Begin so pos-
itively as to 'disappoint' and
`embarrass' Sadat.
"In an effort at damage
control, an unscheduled
'Keep Shabbes' Writer Urges
as Energy-Say ing Suggestion
By DAVID SCHWARTZ
ing the Middle East.
"I think you've got some-
thing," I said. "I'll write to
my Congressman about it."
The truth is that much of
our fuel is not necessary. We
coddle ourselves too much. I
recall as a child only one
room in our house was
warmed in winter. If one
was cold, he walked around.
Walking is a kind of fuel. It
warms you. Also it is good
exercise. It makes you
stronger as well as keeps
you warmer.
Imagine Abraham Lin-
coln getting out of a Rolls
Royce and then talking at
Gettysburg how four
score years ago our
forefathers said all men
are created equal. It's ab-
surd. We had great
Presidents in those days
because they walked.
They didn't honk horns.
The Talmud points out
that if two logs of wood
stand beside each other —
one dry and one wet — the
dry one will also tend to be-
come wet. By the same prin-
ciple, perhaps by simply
standing beside a warm
person, we can get warm
also. So if people got to-
gether more, they would not
need as much gasoline. So
being friendly is one way of
getting energy.
"All of which prompted
the usually placid Wash-
ington Star to suggest
that the President was
talking too much. 'One
would think that at this
delicate stage of negotia-
tions ... Mr. Carter
would avoid saying any-
thing capable of being
stretched into an
endorsement of the
negotiating position of
either party ... The
President and his gray
eminence, Mr. Brzezinski
(whom we guess to be
that oft-quoted blabber-
mouth of a 'senior offi-
cial' in the Carter entour-
age) seem unable to resist
kibbitzing over the
shoulders of the
negotiators and upstag-
ing the principals. To do
it not once, not twice, but
practically every day is
recklessly self-indulgent.
It tends to reinforce the
suspicion that Mr. Car-
ter, well-meaning as he
may be, is also inept.'
"In effect, the Camp
David accords constituted a
de facto repudiation of Car-
ter's previous demands for a
comprehensive settlement
and an endorsement of
Henry Kissinger's step-by-
step approach, first con-
ceived by President Nixon.
And they also constituted a
repudiation of Carter's
previous advocacy of what
he called 'open diplomacy.'
"All through the cam-
paign, he had scorned the
Kissinger approach. 'Under
the Nixon and Ford Ad-
ministrations,' he said,
`there . . . evolved a kind of
secretive, lone-ranger'
foreign policy — a one-man
policy of international ad-
venture. A foreign policy
based on secrecy inherently
has to be closely guarded
and amoral, and we have
had to forego openness, con-
sultation, and a constant
adherence to fundamental
principles and high moral
standards.'
"The 'lone ranger' got in
his lick _ s following Camp
David. 'Every Administra-
tion,' said Kissinger, 'has
come in and said, 'We're
going to change the world'
This one came in and said,
`We created the world.' "
"As the weeks passed
into months without a
who makes decisions about
the policy concerning inter-
national affairs and I do not
see anything wrong or im-
PRESIDENT CARTER
peace treaty, the glow of
Camp David began to
dim. And Carter was al-
most beside himself. He
went public and berated
Israel, expressing frus-
tration over how every
point in dispute with
Egypt had to go `to the
Prime Minister and to the
Cabinet' for resolution.
Of course, Carter had no
such problem with
Egypt. For Egypt was not
a democracy."
Stuart Eizenstadt, as one
of the President's closest
advisers and most active
members on the White
House staff, gets special
mention in Lasky's book. In
this regard, Robert Shrum,
a Carter speech writer, is re-
ferred to with regard to the
"Jewish influence" as a vot-
ing power. Quoting Lasky:
"And Shrum was defi-
nitely not prepared for what
he claimed was Carter's re-
sponse to a suggestion he
make still another state-
ment on the thorny Mideast
situation. He quoted Carter
as saying: 'We have to be
cautious. We don't want to
offend anybody . . . I don't
want any more statements
on the Middle East or Leba-
non. Jackson has all the
Jews anyway. It doesn't
matter how far I go. I don't
get over four percent of the
Jewish vote anyway, so
forget it. We get the Chris-
tians.' Shrum, however,
considered the remark
politically pragmatic, not
anti-Semitic. Still, its dis-
closure sent a shock wave of
concern throughout the
American Jewish commu-
nity."
With reference to
Eizenstadt, Carter's adviser
on domestic affairs, the
Jewish spokesman and the
avowed Zionist, Lasky
makes a point of the critical
attitude of William Safire,
New York Times columnist.
proper about Mr. Caddell
serving Saudi Arabia or
other nations in the Middle
East.'
"The statement was dis-
sected with dispatch by Bill
Safire. The issue, Safire
wrote, was not that Caddell
`should have to give up all
his other subscribers,' as
Carter had stated.
`(The) conflict of interest
is with one client, the
foreign power that enforces
the anti-Jewish boycott,
which Mr. Carter's pollster
signed up after the Carter
bandwagon had begun to
roll,' wrote Sat- ire.
"As far as Carter's 'some -
of- my - best - analysts - are -
WILLIAM
SAVA.
—
Jewish response,' Safire
wrote, 'this is what one ex- =_
pects not of Spiro Agnew .. .
The notion that Mr. Carte'- -
blithely presents of balanc-
ing one Jew against on:,
Arab lobbyist on his staff —
for him to then make Middle;-
East decisions — is repug-
nant. He ought to be mak
ing his foreign policy on the '
basis of what is right andi
the U.S. interest, with staf-
fers providing facts, not re-
presenting other in-
terests.' "
Jewish Women's Agency
Helps Settle Russian Jews
family to its own hotel effi-
ciency apartment, where
A growing number of we've already stocked the
Soviet Jews are being per- refrigerator and prepared a
mitted to leave the USSR `welcome home' meal.
and enter the United States
"Afterwards, we giv(
and communities through- them a day or two to recovei,
out this country are feeling from the long flight from
the effect of the latest tide of Rome, and then every fam-
Soviet immigration.
ily is-visited by either my-
From Montgomery, Ala., self or another volunteer
which is awaiting the arri- who's fluent in Russian.
val of its first Russian fam- Some volunteers teach
ily, to Miami, Fla., which them how to shop, others
expects an influx of 550 new bring them to the social se,
Soviet immigrants before curity office and set ui
the end of the year, Na- counseling appointment,
tional Council of Jewish and job interviews. We helr
Women is one of the volun- them find permanent
teer organizations working apartments, and furnish
with professional agencies them with donations from
in the resettlement of these our thrift shop.
individuals and families.
"We've also arranged
Thousands of volunteers for several dOctors, de-
are involved in established ntists and lawyers --
NCJW programs which mostly either NCJW
help ease the difficult tran- members or their hus-
sition to a new culture, new bands — to donate their
home and new lifestyle.
services to those who
One of the busiest re- need them.
"Every child who arrives
settlement programs is
carried out by NCJW's is tested for language skill,5
Miami Section, which has by one of our volunteers, a
had an active "Rescue woman who has an MA de-
and Migration Service" gree in audiology. Based on
since the early part of the the tests, she makeg
recommendatiohs as to
century.
"Over the years, NCJW what type of langu ord:
The reference is • to
criticism of Carter ad- women have helped to re- gram would best — the
viser Pat Caddell, who settle Hungarians, German child's needs. -
"We also offer English
was also on the payroll of Jews, Cubans," noted Judy
Saudi Arabia to the tune Levin, who was herself a classes for all ages every
Russian refugee and is now night in a local public
of $80,000 per year.
" 'I don't have anything to volunteer chairman of the school; about 40 teacheis
conceal about it,' said the Miami program. "The ex- have volunteered their time
newly minted presidential tensive program which we to instruct the Russians in
candidate, 'and I don't think now have for Soviet immig- English as a second lan-
that because we have a con- rants is the result of 60 guage. And for those who
can't get out to the classes —
tract with Mr. Caddell to do _ years of experience.
"Our volunteers meet mothers of young children, I
political polling that he
should have to give up all every immigrant family ar- or older adults — we hold
his other subscribers where riving at Miami Airport, at-home group tutorials.
Throughout the country
most of his income is de- and bring them back into
rived . . . 'Caddell, said Car- the city," explained Mrs. NCJW cooperates with the
ter, 'does not fulfill a role in Levin. "They travel in cara- council of Jewish federate`
our campaign of establish- vans of cars, always led by tions, which coordinates
ing policy concerning the one woman who likes to most of the funds available:
Middle East, or even the head the procession in her to resettle new Soviet
analysis of issues concern- mobile home. We bring each Jewish immigrants.
(
By DENISE WEICHER
(Copyright 19'79, JTA, Inc.)