The Perot Puzzle
The Texas billionaire's positions on the Middle East remain an elusive
target for American Jews.
JAMES D. BESSER
Washington Correspondent
W
here does Ross
Perot stand on
Israel and Jewish
issues?
That's a question being
asked increasingly by Jew-
ish political activists around
the country seeking infor-
mation on Mr. Perot's
elusive positions as his can-
didacy becomes more real.
At last month's policy con-
ference of the American
Israel Public Affairs Com-
mittee, audiences cheered
when Mr. Perot's name was
mentioned — a sharp con-
trast to the hisses and cat-
calls that greeted every
mention of President George
Bush.
And while most observers
believe that Arkansas Gov.
Bill Clinton will win big
among Jewish voters in
November, political consul-
tant Mark Seigel says that
"Perot could do surprisingly
well, despite the fact that we
really know very little about
him."
So far, the Texas business
wizard has ducked questions
about the details of his pro-
grams; as a political out-
sider, he has a scanty polit-
ical track record that might
enable critics and supporters
alike to glean information
about how he is likely to
conduct himself in office.
40
FRIDAY, MAY 29, 1992
Ross Perot: Waiting on positions.
In television interviews —
the most authoritative
source of information on Mr.
Perot's slippery positions
—the candidate has express-
ed strong support for Israel
and a recognition of Israel's
role as an important ally.
Mr. Perot has reportedly
expressed special admira-
tion for Israel's controversial
housing minister, Ariel Sha-
ron —another unconven-
tional, take-charge kind of
politician who makes many
Jews uneasy.
Mr. Perot has not talked
about foreign aid, but even
some of his supporters sug-
gest that aid — including
Israel's $3.2 billion annual
allotment — could be jeopar-
dized if he defies the odds
makers and moves to the
White House next January.
"He is going to have a
businessman's attitude
about foreign aid," said po-
litical scientist Amos
Perlmutter —who said he
will vote for the Texas
billionaire. "He hasn't said
anything specifically about
aid — but if I understand his
positions, he would be likely
to say that Israel and other
countries have to take care
of themselves. His economic
positions are going to be a
problem, I'm quite convinc-
ed."
But the Perot candidacy,
according to Mr. Perlmutter,
At last month's
AIPAC conference,
audiences cheered
when Mr. Perot's
name was
mentioned.
will pick up substantial sup-
port from Jews who have
been alienated by the Bush
administration — but who
feel uncomfortable with
what some see as the Dem-
ocratic Party's coziness with
its most left-wing elements.
"I'm a political conser-
vative," he said. "Bush
should not be rewarded for
his attacks on Jews and on
Israel. But Clinton would be
indebted to the Left; if he
wins, even without (Jesse)
Jackson, he would be in debt
to forces not friendly to
Israel or Jews."
Mr. Perlmutter, who serv-
ed on the Bush foreign policy
transition team in 1988, will
do what many Americans
are apparently ready to do —
vote for Mr. Perot as a form
of electoral protest.
Mr. Perot's positions on
Middle East peace talks
strike other Jewish activists
as somewhat naive and un-
sophisticated.
In interviews, Mr. Perot
has suggested that he would
send negotiators to stay in
the Middle East until a set-
tlement was reached, in-
stead of engaging in periodic
bouts of shuttle diplomacy.
"From what he has said
about the Middle East, he
does not seem terribly well
informed," said Norman
Ornstein, a political scien-
tist at the American Enter-
prise Institute. "He has said
that Israel is a real friend of
ours, but not our only friend
in the Middle East. But his
`we can all reason together'
kind of approach reflects the
kind of unrealistic attitude
that has been frequently
foiled in the past."
Those strange fragments
appear to be the sum total of
Mr. Perot's platform for the
Middle East, in contrast to
the detailed position papers
put out by the Clinton and
Bush campaigns — a polit-
ical liability in the Jewish
community, where
statements on the Middle
East are microscopically ex-
amined for hints of how a
candidate's positions might
affect the delicate
U.S.-Israeli relationship.
In the past, Mr. Perot has
enjoyed relatively good rela-
tions with American Jewish
organizations.
His longtime business
partner and now one of his
biggest boosters in the pres-
idential contest is Morton
Meyerson, a Texas busi-
nessman and philanthropist
who is involved in a wide
range of Jewish activities.
In the past, Mr. Perot has
been honored by Jewish
organizations, and he recent-
ly keynoted an American
Jewish Committee dinner in
New York.
Leaders of the American
Israel Public Affairs Com-
mittee (AIPAC) met recently
with Mr. Meyerson to
discuss the Perot candidacy
— another indication that at
the very least, the pro-Israel
community is taking his run
for the White House seri-
ously.
But many Jewish activists,
including some who are ex-
pressing admiration for Mr.
Perot's quixotic quest, seem
profoundly uneasy about the
emergence of this political