American Elections: Much Ado About Nothing

So, an election that was dubbed by many as a “referrendum on the Iraq war” has given Democrats a majority in the House. The anti-war vote has even brought back the very pro-war Lieberman, lest there be a shortage of voices gunning for a new war against Iran.

In the words of Isaiah, we will make ourselves to Israel ‘as hiding places from the winds and shelters from the tempests; as rivers of water in dry places; as shadows of a great rock in a weary land…The United States will stand with Israel now and forever. Now and forever.

That of course is how the new speaker of the house, Nancy Pelosi — a “liberal” Democrat championed by the American anti-war movement who insists she shouldn’t be mistaken for a “San Francisco liberal” - concluded her speech at the 2005 AIPAC annual conference. Like John Kerry, she generally votes for things before she discovers she is opposed to them - the Patriot Act and the Iraq war for instance. She has shilled for Israel since the Anti-Defamation League sent her on a junket to Israel in 1990. AIPAC thinks she has “a perfect record of support for the U.S.-Israel relationship”.

Liberals are rejoicing already, and the “anti-war movement” believes it has scored a victory. Supporters of Palestine would be wise to hold their horses, however:

Another veteran official at a major Jewish group told the Forward that “as far as it concerns Pelosi, there is no question about her commitment to Israel and nothing about that will change.”

For the first time a Muslim, Keith Ellison, has also made it to the congress in a capacity other than a State of the Union prop for the President from a newly “liberated” country. The black Democrat won a race in which “he advocated quick U.S. withdrawal from Iraq and made little mention of his faith.”

Jerusalem Post reassures us:

US policy toward Israel is not expected to shift dramatically if Democrats take control of Congress. While Republican leaders have made efforts to overtly back Israel in recent years, analysts point to historic support for Israel among Democrats…

“There will be some Democratic chairmen who may not share all my views or have as clear a perspective on Israel as I do,” Rep. Henry Waxman (D-California), a Jewish lawmaker, said in a recent on-line chat with Jewish voters, sponsored by the House Democratic caucus. “But they will not be chairing committees dealing with Israel and the Middle East.”