WASHINGTON — Texas Gov. George W. Bush says that he, and not his father, will be the candidate as he makes his run for the presidency.
So as Bush seeks to carve out his own niche from his father’s presidential legacy, what does that mean for Jewish voters?
They supported George Herbert Walker Bush in relatively strong numbers for a Republican candidate in 1988 against a weak Democratic nominee, Michael Dukakis. But they deserted Bush in his 1992 re-election bid against Bill Clinton and Ross Perot, amid cool relations between the Jewish community and the Bush administration.
The view of the younger George Bush that emerged from interviews with politically active Jewish Democrats and Republicans in Washington and Texas depends on which side of the political divide you talk to.
Jewish Republican supporters of Bush, who has emerged as the leading contender to win the GOP presidential nomination and is beating Vice President Al Gore in numerous opinion polls, describe him as someone who is personable, practical rather than an ideologue, inclusive and genuinely concerned about helping the disadvantaged, an attribute his backers say should appeal to Jews.
Bush describes himself as a “compassionate conservative,” a term that has drawn flak from GOP candidates on the right, but an outlook that A. Mark Neuman, who served in the Reagan White House, said should make Jews feel “more comfortable” than the “country club Republicanism” of Bush’s father.
Jewish Republicans say Bush will be a strong supporter of Israel, and note that he is surrounding himself with key Jewish advisers, as well as non-Jewish advisers who are well respected in the Jewish community, such as former Secretary of State George Shultz.
However, Jewish Democrats argue that Bush’s positions on many issues, including his anti-abortion stance, support for school vouchers and support for student-led prayers before high school football games, do not jibe with the views held by the majority of American Jews.
They contend that Bush will have to shift further to the right in an effort to appeal to powerful segments within the GOP that are highly influential in the presidential nominating process.
“Will he be able to wear this moderate mantle and win the primary?” asked Stephen Silberfarb, deputy executive director and general counsel of the National Jewish Democratic Coalition.
“Unless there is a change at the core of the Republican Party…you’re not going to get any meaningful Jewish support for a Republican candidate,” he added. “It’s not the salesman, it’s the product.”
Some Jewish Democrats say they haven’t seen the “compassion” in some aspects of Bush’s state legislative agenda, such as welfare reform.
Counters Matt Brooks, executive director of the Republican Jewish Coalition, a group that took Bush to Israel last year, “If they haven’t seen it [compassion], they have blinders on.”
Jewish Democrats further question Bush’s familiarity and sensitivity regarding American Jews. They point to the story — which he told to a reporter during his first run for governor in 1993 — indicating that he believed only Christians have a place in heaven.
Bush attempted to clarify his remarks in a letter sent late last year to Abraham Foxman, national director of the Anti-Defamation League. Bush wrote, “Judgments about heaven do not belong in the realm of politics or this world; they belong to a Higher Authority. In discussing my own personal faith as a Christian, I in no way meant to imply any disrespect or to denigrate any other religion. During my four years as governor, I have set a positive tone that includes my respect for individuals from all faiths, all backgrounds and all walks of life.”
Brooks said the Jewish community should “take comfort in the fact” that while Bush may have certain “deeply held views,” he does not seek to impose those views on others.
Jewish Democrats also raise the specter of the less-than-warm relationship President Bush’s administration enjoyed with the Jewish community.
Some of Bush’s Jewish backers chalk up the friction between President Bush and the Jewish community to bad public relations, rather than substance. They say George W. Bush is his own person, with his own team of advisers, and must ultimately be judged on his own record.
“We don’t really know who he is,” said one active Jewish Republican in Texas, who has not yet decided which GOP candidate he will back. “He is not Jack Kemp; he is not Ronald Reagan,” he added, mentioning two Republicans who have endeared themselves to large segments of the American Jewish community.
But Bush’s backers reject the notion that he is not making an effort to connect with the Jewish community. They quickly point out that last year, as he was considering whether to run for president, he traveled to Israel with several other governors on a trip sponsored by the Republican Jewish Coalition.
Mel Sembler, the Republican National Committee’s national finance chairman, traveled to Israel with Bush. Sembler said the governor told him the “trip changed his life in many ways” and that he “reconnected with his own Christianity” with visits to the Sea of Galilee and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.
“Governor Bush is a very sensitive man and appreciates all that he saw and will be a great friend to Israel,” Sembler said.
Elliot Abrams, who served as assistant secretary of state during the Reagan administration, said, “If Governor Bush can give the impression that he is more friendly to Israel than his father, it will be helpful.”
However, the positive effect will be minimal, according to Abrams. He said Jews are not swing voters and will strongly back Gore, who is the likely Democratic nominee and is seen as a strong supporter of Israel going back to his days in Congress.
Bush, on the other hand, has had no experience dealing with Israel or other foreign-affairs issues.
In an effort to blunt criticism that Bush lacks political experience beyond the Lone Star state, his Jewish backers have highlighted the fact that Bush has assembled a large stable of Jewish advisers to help him address domestic, economic and foreign-policy issues.
While Brooks said “nobody votes for a candidate because they have Jewish advisers,” he stressed that by surrounding himself with such people, it shows that Bush has “a comfort level with the American Jewish community.”