Why American Jews should flee the Democratic Party

[Editors note: This article was written before the Israel-Iran war.]

Once the favored party of American Jews, who believed that holding a liberal and tolerant viewpoint towards all others would also go well for them, today’s Democratic party no longer represents that same indulging acceptance towards their Jewish constituency.

If you don’t agree, how does one explain that over 100 Democrats oppose condemning the recent Boulder, CO attack?

Is it because Democrats are so partisan that they are unable to support a bill proposed by Republican Colorado Congressman Gabe Evans who called for “the condemnation of Mohamed Soliman, the perpetrator of the antisemitic terror attack, free and open communication between state and local law enforcement as an essential part of preventing terrorist attacks and the expression of gratitude to law enforcement officers for their work in ensuring safety.”

Or is it because today’s Democrats view Jews as an extension of Israel, in the same way that the progressive segment of their party does? If you ask Squad members, Rashida Tlaib, Ilhan Omar, Ayanna Pressley, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Greg Casar and Summer Lee, how they view Israel, you will be hard-pressed to find anything but stark condemnation and utter contempt for the Jewish state.

In fact, it was just last month that Tlaib, Ocasio-Cortez and Omar “introduced legislation in Congress, recognizing the 77th anniversary of the nakba, the Arabic term Palestinians use for the “catastrophe’ or “disaster” associated with the founding of the modern-day State of Israel.”

It wasn’t only Squad members who introduced the bill but also other congressional representatives, including Andre Carson (IN), Summer Lee (PA), Ayanna Pressley (MA), Delia Ramirez (IL), Lateefa Simon (CA) and Bonnie Watson Coleman (NJ). Tlaib went even further, calling Israel “an apartheid regime carrying out a genocide in Gaza that seeks to erase Palestinians from existence.”

With venomous accusations, such as those, no middle ground is left for Jews to feel at home or embrace a commonality with the same individuals who have complete disdain for their homeland and its people. 

As far back as 2024, three of those Squad members, along with Cori Bush, who is no longer in Congress, opposed a House resolution condemning the global rise of antisemitism which became so prevalent after the October 7th attack.  

The excuse given by Rep. Omar’s refusal to support the bill, was due to the “definition of antisemitism,” as “holding a hateful perception of Jews.” Omar, seeing this as a conflation with criticizing Israel, rejected the premise, forcefully contending that the resolution did nothing to combat antisemitism.  Additionally, she took the opportunity to state her intention not to be silenced when expressing “genuine concerns of the Israeli government.”

Her very transparent unwillingness to openly call out antisemitism, without linking it to other forms of bigotry, merely permitted her the legitimacy to continue to harshly criticize Israel while cleverly thinking that she could be shielded from not being called an antisemite – a ludicrous belief! 

Instead, she disingenuously attempted to turn the focus to “Islamophobia, racism, white nationalism and other forms of hate.” Of course, not to make it too obvious, she also threw in the threat towards dissent and free speech, for good measure.

But this unwillingness to condemn antisemitism, as an evil which stands on its own, is not just an isolated phenomenon amongst political progressive Democrats, because it is also widely being seen within Woke communities of university students, academia, corporate America and other elite segments of society as they continue their virulent protests against Israel which has often manifested itself against Jewish individuals with no Israeli affiliation other than being part of the same ethnicity.

Consequently, many Jews no longer feel safe even amongst their own party member affiliates, who now see them very negatively. We remember the shock expressed by Jewish actress Julianna Margulies, following the massacre of October 7th, when she realized that the same minorities, whom she spent a lifetime supporting throughout their own struggles, were not present for her community when most needed. 

Suddenly abandoned, a lot of Jews began to feel alone and even scorned. The instant turnaround became an unexpected and humiliating wake-up call for the very sizeable Jewish American population, who had previously been proud to cast their votes for whatever “D” candidate was running.  

Now, there cannot even be a unanimous condemnation, by Democrats, for the vicious attack of an illegal Egyptian national, who violently invaded a peaceful pro-Israel march, calling for the release of hostages still held by terrorists.  Even his home-made incendiary device, intended to burn as many Jews as possible, doesn’t seem to have been enough of a shocker to bring these 100 Democratic holdouts together, long enough to say, “We roundly denounce this type of insidious evil, calling it out for the reprobate atrocity that it represents.”

Is it too much to ask all Democrats to stand with Jews against those whose hate has spilled over into a wish for their deaths?  If they can’t, then they have become a political party which is no longer committed to looking out for a segment of its own faithful supporters. Consequently, they are not worth the loyalty they have received by their Jewish members, some of whom are also Democratic leaders - senators, congressmen or governors with presidential aspirations.

If this is the new direction being taken by many Democrats now, what are the chances that in three more years, when the next election rolls around, Jewish candidates will not be seen as a liability to a party which has been unable to curb their more radical members from spewing antisemitic rhetoric, such as accusations of genocide and war crimes?

If anything, the next few years is likely to bring out even more of those virulent sentiments, because those who make the choice to remain in a party, which vilifies Jews, will do so with the full knowledge and consent that they, too, take up such heinous positions, willing to support others who feel the same way.  The rest will, hopefully, realize that they no longer identify with such hate, choosing to make their exit from that kind of unjustified prejudice and bigoted intolerance.

The handwriting is already on the wall, so American Jews should waste no time running from a party which is no longer with them and has made no secret of leaving them high and dry in the midst of their greatest tragedy since the dark days of the Holocaust.