The e-mail announcement made me laugh out loud. The speaker for the February 1st meeting of the California Republican Assembly — Temecula-Murrieta chapter – would be Larry Greenfield, Southern California Director of the Republican Jewish Coalition. Knowing something about the political history of American Jews, I just knew Larry’s outfit must be one small group. Overwhelmingly, Jews vote Democratic, right? Maybe Mr. Greenfield was the coalition, an amalgam of one, numerically similar to a convention of black conservative Republicans. “The crowd wore a sport shirt” was a possible headline.
Perhaps adding to the challenge awaiting Mr. Greenfield, I thought, is the religious disposition of the CRA. As our website declares, “We believe in the guiding force of moral law as expressed by the Judeo-Christian ethic and contained in the Holy Scriptures of these historic faiths.” Welcoming citizens of all faiths, our chapter is nevertheless predominately Christian. An evangelical pastor opens our meetings by invoking the blessing of Jesus Christ. How, I wondered, would a Jewish speaker address political and religious issues to such an audience? I decided to sit near an exit, just in case things got ugly.
Thankfully, our meeting was delightful. Gracious, respectful, engaging and humorous, I discovered one of Mr. Greenfield’s many gifts is finding common ground. Although his speech wasn’t about core values per se, the pillars of conservatism — individual liberty, limited government, rule of law, private property rights, and free-market capitalism — were scattered through a wide-ranging presentation touching on the current election cycle, middle-east social and political developments, historical sketches of Iran and Germany, and, of course, the state of Jewish domestic politics. Never did an hour pass so quickly.
I humbly admit, I had a lot to learn about Jewish-American voting patterns. From 1860 until the election of Franklin Roosevelt, American Jews voted overwhelmingly Republican. From FDR until the recent past, the Jewish vote has been solidly Democratic. However, as the RJC website states, “The last decade has seen tremendous growth in the number of Jews identifying with Republican ideas and the GOP.” For instance, in California’s 2003 recall election, Republican candidates Arnold Schwarzenegger and Tom McClintock combined received 40% of the Jewish vote. The Republican Jewish Coalition has been working since 1985 to make the Republican Party home for a majority of American Jews, again.
Complete information about the Republican Jewish Coalition is available at www.rjchq.org. With a strong presence in Washington D.C., the RJC has chapters around the nation. I’m convinced a representative like Mr. Greenfield would be an excellent choice for your organization’s next event.
Posted by Jerry Pomeroy in Politics