Ins uetturrawian
Reagan's Debt to U.S. Jews Remains to Be
(Continued from Page 1) cial, ethnic and racial
the need to be indebted to tensions which intermit-
any one segment of the elec- tently flare up into vio-
torate. Obviously, Reagan lence in various urban
had support in the Jewish centers across the coun-
community.
try. The President-elect
However, the sweeping has promised to make
victory for Reagan America's socio-
showed also that he re- economic problems a top
ceived an across-the- priority item, recognizing
board mandate from all that the longer this prob-
segments of the voting lem festers, the more
population and from exacerbated the situation
regions that included will become.
traditional Democratic
But this is precisely the
strongholds.
area in which Reagan has
A pp-, It is apparent that all
not yet formulated a cohe-
iese segments feel that rent and cohesive program,
they have earned a right to other than some
be heard on matters of con- generalized panaceas and
cern and interest to them in good intentions. And this is
international and domestic precisely the area which so
affairs. The question is many of his Jewish suppor-
whether Reagan will feel ters are either ignoring or
beholden, and to whom.
unquestioningly accepting
Reagan, like previous his nostrums.
Presidential candidates,
It is imperative, there-
made promises to many
fore, for the leadership of
segments and interest American Jewry to help
groups, but once elected, all formulate a viable economic
Presidents have disap- program that will be bene-
pointed one or another, or
ficial for this country and,
several, of their constituen-
thereby, be helpful in pro-
cies by backtracking or re- viding Israel with the aid
versing themselves on some
required to maintain its
of their promises.
safety and security.
In terms of promises
One of the major prob-
Presidential candidates lems American Jews will
have made regarding sup- have to deal with in the next
port of Israel, for example, period after Reagan is
many Jews were keenly sworn in as President is how
disappointed with the to effectively link American
White House occupants economic and foreign inter-
from President Eisenhower ests with Israel's needs. If
right through Carter.
Reagan really is intent on
The American Jewish dealing with the economy
community has all too and at the same time
often learned the hard strengthening America's
way that election cam- military posture, then the
paign pledges are not U.S. foreign aid programs,
promissory notes that including that for Israel,
can be cashed in on a may be put to the back
given date. Moreover, burner.
American Jews have also
Realistically, a Reagan
learned that campaign Administration with a
pledges often lose in _Republican-controlled
value because of the very Senate where many con-
nature of the inflated servative Republicans
statements.
now seem slated to head
This is not to say that Re- influential committees,
agan will not want to keep and a conservative
his pledges and promises; oriented House, will be
but the dynamics of na- focusing less on foreign
tional and international de- aid packages and more
velopments are frequently on domestic affairs —
not determined by what any again, if Reagan intends
one person would like to to keep his pledge to re-
happen, nor to have them vitalize this nation's
happen under the mott economy.
But international de-
favorable circumstances.
Reagan, for example, velopments may force
made a telling point when domestic programs to be put
he observed at the Bnai aside and this, in turn, may
Brith International conven- intensify dissatisfaciton
tion in Washington last among those segments of
September that neither Is- the electorate which voted
rael's survival nor the abil- for Reagan on the basis of
ity to help "dissidents his promises for economic
gainst tyranny can become palliatives.
American Jewish leaders
Ilirealistic policy choices if our
American economy con- who have been minimizing
tinues to deteriorate under the danger of anti-Semitism
Carter policies of high un- and neo-Nazism in this
employment, taxes and in- country will also have to
face the fact that the "new
flation."
This was one of the rare right" — the Moral Major-
instances in which a candi- ity, Christian Voice, the
date for the Presidency National Conservative
indicated the interrelation- Political Action Committee
and other conservative and
ship between domestic eco-
church-oriented groups
nomic policies and foreign
which poured millions of
affairs.
dollars into the election
. The question now is,
how Reagan will deal campaign to help defeat lib-
with the present triad of eral Congressmen who were
also staunchly pro-Israel —
massive unemployment,
has gained ground as a re-
skyrocketing inflation
and staggering taxes sult of Reagan's victory, not
with its concomitant so- because they feel that they,
too, helped influence his
victory and have "one com-
ing to them."
There is no way to deter-
mine at this point how Re-
agan will deal with the
"New Right" since he was
not asked to go on record on
this issue. To be sure, he
branded the Palestine Lib-
eration- Organization an
outright terrorist combine
and unambiguously de-
nounced the anti-Semitic
attacks against Jews in
France.
But he was not asked—
and he did not volunteer
— his views about the ter-
rorism of American
anti-Semites and neo-
Nazis or the long-range
implications for Jews of
the increasing strength of
the ultra-conservative
Evangelical fundamen-
talists.
The Moral Majority and
their allies are, in the words
of Albert Vorspan, vice
president of the Union of
American Hebrew Congre-
gations, "cannibalizing
American society." The
growing danger of the "new
right" was also described by
Dr. Alfred Gottschalk,
president of the Hebrew
Union College-Jewish In-
stitute of Religion, as "a
new fascism . . . arising"
and as fascism "in its inci-
pient stage."
If Jewish supporters of
Reagan feel that American
Jewry has earned the right
to be heard on matters of
concern and interest to the
Jewish community in
domestic as well as interna-
tional affairs, then a high
priority item is to make
their voices heard on the
issue of the "New Right"
which is both a domestic
and international devel-
opment. In fact, there is a
link between the emergence
and growth of the "New
Right" and the ongoing eco-
nomic problems in this•
country and abroad.
The "New Right," as did
the old right and Nazi
movements, feeds upon the
discontent and alienation of
lower middle class and
working class elements who
suffer most from a chaotic
economic system. Economic
revitalization, therefore, is
- LOWEST• MOM
arned
basic to reversing the
growth of the "New Right."
And it is, therefore, in the
interest of the American
Jewish community to de-
velop an agenda and to draft
blueprints and to establish
priorities for an eco-
nomically healthy and
crises-free nation.
American Jewry must not
let itself vacillate on this
issue or to drift aimlessly on
the assumption that the in-
debtedness factor will
automatically operate in its
favor. There will be a great
deal of competition "for a
change." And in those cir-
cumstances, the indebted-
ness factor will not be suffi-
cient to assure the safety
Gassette
Dictating
Transcribing
Machines
and security not only of
American Jews but of Israel
as well.
r
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