"Obama’s relationship with Wright has raised questions about whether
Obama can count on the Jewish vote should he become the Democratic
nominee. A host of earlier issues had already raised doubts about the
Illinois senator for many Jewish voters. They took note that Obama
expressed a willingness to meet with leaders of Iran without
preconditions -- though these leaders have called for the destruction
of Israel; that he expressed sympathy for Palestinians; that his
foreign-policy advisers include former Carter National Security Adviser
Zbigniew Brzezinski and former Clinton National Security Adviser
Anthony Lake, as well as other experts perceived as pro-Palestinian.
Obama's long association with Wright seemed to validate all these
earlier suspicions, and demonstrate to some Jews -- and several leading
political pundits -- that Obama isn't fully pro-Israel.
But that doesn't tell the whole story. While these conservative Jewish
groups have relentlessly criticized Obama and pointed to his poll
numbers leveling off after the Wright controversy as evidence of
Obama's electability problems with Jewish voters, there is little
evidence that Jews have fled Obama in the Pennsylvania primary. These
conservative groups could still play a significant role in the general
election, influencing Jewish voters in swing states like Florida,
Michigan and Ohio should Obama be the nominee. They undoubtedly will
try to do this. But political experts agree that they represent a very
small percentage of Jews. Most Jewish voters, they say, would remain a
part of Obama's well-educated, affluent and liberal base.
Obama's Jewish Problem Exaggerated
This thorough article breaks down how a few passionate voices can distort the media perception of Barack Obama's relationship with a key Democratic constituency: America's Jewish voters.