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good record on Israel, but she can't
equal Torn DeLay when it comes to
supporting Sharon," this source said.
DeLay, R-Texas, newly elevated to sec-
ond-in-command of the House GOP
caucus, has become a strong backer of
Israeli right-wing positions. At a meet-
ing of the pro-Israel lobby last spring,
he claimed that Gaza, the West Bank
and the Golan Heights are
all legitimate parts of Israel.
Some Democrats expect
the new GOP leadership
to quickly introduce tough
pro-Israel resolutions in an
effort to put Pelosi and
the Democrats on the spot Tom
and portray them as "soft" DeLay
on Israel. "I don't know if
it's a conscious plan by the
leadership," said Jack
Abramoff, a top lobbyist
who is close to DeLay.
.4tt,
"But the natural Hastert-
Nancy
DeLay approach on Israel
Pelosi
will make the Democratic
leadership squirm; there
will be votes that the Republican lead-
ership will put forward that will make
the Democrats very uncomfortable.
Pelosi has members of her caucus who
are in prominent positions who have
serious problems in terms of Israel."
Matthew Brooks, executive director
of the Republican Jewish Coalition,
denied that the Republicans plan to
use Israel as a "wedge" issue, but said
there are "systemic problems with the
Democratic Party on where they are
with respect to the policies of
Sharon."
Gilbert Kahn, a Kean University
political scientist, said the GOP will
use a "multitrack strategy to try to
discredit the new Democratic leader-
ship" and portray it as shifting back to
the left. Proposing hawkishly pro-
Israel resolutions that Democratic lib-
erals may choke on could be part of
•
that strategy, he said.
The risk to Democrats could be
magnified by pro-Israel groups eager
to win official expressions of congres-
sional support, especially if the next
Israeli government shifts further to
the right. But Kahn said that he
doubted Pelosi would allow herself to
get outflanked on Israel.
"She comes out of the California
Democratic Party, where they play the
game hard and play it right," he said.
"She's a very competent politician."
And a leading Jewish Democrat said
that the GOP strategy could lead to
GOP internecine warfare. "Many of
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these guys are more pro-Likud than
pro-Israel," this source said. "Their
`not-one-inch' positions reflect the
stance of the evangelicals — and that
could collide directly with the policies
of the Republican administration,
which at some point is going to
demand that Israel and the
Palestinians cut a deal."
Ira Forman, executive director of
the National Jewish Democratic
Council, said the potential GOP
strategy represents "amateur hour
when it comes to dealing with the
American Jewish community. They
define being pro-Israel as going so far
to the right that you fall off the ends
of the earth."
Speaking of the new Democratic
House leadership team, Forman said
that "when it comes. to being pro-
Israel and pro-Jewish, I'd match
Pelosi, Hoyer and Menendez against
any Republican line up in Congress."
Anti-Muslim
Televangelist Pat Robertson, in hot
water these days because of his harsh
statements about Islam, is increasingly
irked that Jewish leaders refuse to join
his crusade.
That was evident in an exchange
between Robertson and the Religious
Action Center of Reform Judaism —
one of the Jewish groups that criti-
cized his latest blast aimed at the
Islamic world.
In a discussion of Islam
on his popular "700 Club"
television broadcast,
Robertson urged Jews to
wake up, open their eyes
and read what is being
said about them ... This is
Pat
Robertson worse than the Nazis.
Adolf Hitler was bad, but
what the Muslims want to
do to the Jews is worse."
He said the Koran teaches that "the
end of the world will not come until
every Jew on earth is killed by the
Muslims."
Anti-Islam comments by Robertson,
the Rev. Jerry Falwell and other evan-
gelists have finally gotten the atten-
tion of the Bush administration,
which is trying to convince the world
that the U.S. war on terrorism is not a
war against Islam.
Last week, President Bush told
reporters that "some of the comments
that have been uttered about Islam do
not reflect the sentiments of my gov-
ernment or the sentiments of most
Americans." Jewish groups joined the
criticism. ❑
"