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Just 62% of Jewish voters say they will cast a ballot for Obama this November, according to a recent poll. That’s down from 78% in the election four years ago. The new poll from the Public Religion Research Institute indicates that Republicans may be luring voters away from the Democrats. As Rachel Rogers reports, this could be a reflection of the changing Jewish American population.

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Stephen Greenfield was a Democrat. But about 25 years ago he changed his mind and became a Republican. Since then he has voted for both parties, including twice for Bill Clinton.

GREENFIELD 1

I vote for the candidate who I think is best for the job. Basically I’m looking for someone who is interested in the economy and who is friendly with Israel.

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In this year’s election that means former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney.

GREENFIELD 2

I think that Romney’s gonna be a better friend to Israel than Obama. He’s the only Republican I would have voted for.

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Greenfield, a medical consultant, lives in Bethesda, Maryland. Three years ago he joined the D. C. chapter of the Republican Jewish Coalition, a pro-Israel political action committee. The organization’s website highlighted the poll. It also included a Pew Research Center report that said the percentage of registered Jewish voters who identify as Republican or leaning Republican went from 20 percent in 2008 to 29 percent in 2011.

Hank Sheinkopf is a rabbi and democratic political strategist. He doesn’t find the change that surprising.

SHEINKOPF 1

The Jews have been the most reliable portion of the Democratic electorate after African Americans, so after 80 years it would not be unusual for people to change directions.

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The strong party ties go back to the early 20th century. Democrats were seen as welcoming to minorities and immigrants, while the Republicans shunned them. As a result, the Democratic party won the Jewish vote in every presidential election since 1924. The habit was deeply ingrained, says Rafael Medoff, who writes for the conservative news outlet The Daily Caller.

MEDOFF 1

The idea of voting for a democratic candidate was almost a part of their religion.

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That’s no longer the case. Now the so-called “assimilated” Jewish population doesn’t necessarily see religious heritage as their primary identity. Instead they’re voting by the issues. The PRRI poll shows that Jews who identify as Republican agree with Republican stances on military strength and social policy.

Also, Medoff says the religiously conservative Orthodox community is moving heavily in favor of the Republican party.

For all Jews the protection of Israel is a key issue. Rabbi Jonathan Glass has worked at the Synagogue for the Arts in Tribeca for 22 years.

GLASS

If the potential adversaries of the Jewish community are clear that there is a very strong Israel it tends to insulate the uh, broader Jewish community from any potential threats, but also it means that there is a refuge. That was the whole point of the state of Israel.

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President Obama has been a friend to Israel. But many conservative Jews feel he should have been a better friend. If the 62 percent support indicated in the PRRI poll holds true in November, Obama’s support would be the lowest among Jews since the Democrat Jimmy Carter lost to Republican Ronald Reagan in 1980. Rafael Medoff.

MEDOFF 2

Then too you had a Democrat incumbent president who was perceived in the Jewish community as being unfriendly to Israel and ultimately the majority of American Jewish voters abandoned Carter.

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Media consultant Hank Sheinkopf thinks it would be simple for Romney to build the Jewish vote.

SHEINKOPF 3

All that Romney has to do is to show up with orthodox Jews as often as possible, to campaign as intensely as he can among them, but the problem is they’re really not worth doing that for.

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That’s because most Jews live in states that are strongly democratic like New York and California. But Florida, Pennsylvania, and Ohio are swing states, and have large enough Jewish populations to have a potential impact on the outcome of the election.

Obama will also be fighting to maximize his support among Jews, like he did in 2008. Still, the fact remains that for the first time in many decades, the Jewish vote could be up for grabs.

Rachel Rogers, Columbia Radio News.

 

Last night in West Harlem locals told Uptown Radio they were relieved by the movement in the case.

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BY RACHEL ROGERS

On Super Tuesday, the New York Young Republicans gathered to celebrate at a bar on the East Side. In this “Voices of New York” postcard, we dropped by to check out the scene.

BY RACHEL ROGERS

HOST: In 2010 the Supreme Court ruled restrictions on political donations are unconstitutional. The justices confirmed that spending money is an expression of free speech. Critics expressed concern that the decision would corrupt the political process. Rachel Rogers reports on how the decision is playing out in the run up to Super Tuesday.

ROGERS: Before the Supreme Court decision an individual could contribute a maximum of twenty-four hundred dollars to a presidential candidate. Corporations were not allowed to donate at all. Now individuals and corporations can give as much they want. So, for example, billionaire Sheldon Adelson has donated more than 10 million dollars to support former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich. Daniel Smith is a professor of political science at the University of Florida. He says these donations are legal as long as they are going to independent organizations called super-PACs.

SMITH: Well the super-PACs are essentially a type of political committee that is on steroids, in that these entities can raise unlimited amounts of money from virtually any source.

ROGERS: Opponents worried that the Supreme Court decision would give too much influence to wealthy individuals and corporations. President Obama criticized the decision and the lack of transparency behind super-PAC funding in his 2010 State of the Union Address.

OBAMA: I don’t think American elections should be bankrolled by America’s most powerful interests, or worse, by foreign entities. They should be decided by the American people.

ROGERS: But political scientist Daniel Smith says that corporations have not donated as much as critics feared.

SMITH: One of the facts of the matter is that you have very little corporate money going into these super-PACs right now even though it could be. It’s largely coming from very wealthy individuals.

ROGERS: Those individuals have given almost three million dollars to support former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum. They’ve given almost thirty-seven million to super-PACs supporting former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney. Over thirteen million to those supporting Newt Gingrich. More than three million to super-PACS for Texas congressman Ron Paul. And these numbers are likely to increase because the super-PACs only need to submit quarterly financial reports.

Legally the super-PACs cannot coordinate with campaign organizations. But the majority of their spending goes to traditional campaign activities. Stuart Roy is a political advisor for the Red White and Blue Fund, which supports Santorum. He says most of their spending in one of next Tuesday’s battleground states is going towards advertising.

ROY: In Ohio we have an aggressive voter program going on in phones and mail. We’ve also been up for almost a week on television with a spot comparing the candidates’ records and economic plans.

ROGERS: Mitt Romney’s super-PACs have received more than ten times the money Santorum’s have. But he still has not been able to lock in the nomination. University of Florida political scientist Daniel Smith says this could mean that well funded super-PACs can’t make up for a lack of enthusiasm for a candidate.

SMITH: The republican electorate, at least those who are super-voters and turn out in these republican primaries are dubious of Mitt Romney. They are looking for an alternative and the flavor of the week seems to keep changing.

ROGERS: Meanwhile President Obama has embraced the super-PACs he once criticized and now has two supporting him. At a press conference in February, White House Press Secretary Jay Carney said the democratic campaign was trying to level playing field.

CARNEY: The campaign has made clear that they cannot compete effectively if there are two sets of rules.

ROGERS: The super-PACs may actually be working in Obama’s favor. Mitt Romney’s opponents’ super-PACs have unleashed a barrage of negative ads. The republican frontrunner’s net favorability rating has fallen 17 points in the past four months.

Rachel Rogers, Columbia Radio News.

It’s a greenhouse full of beats — but not the edible kind. In this “Voice of New York” postcard, Willie Green, a music producer of 15 years who has worked with musicians around the world, creates a beat for producer Rachel Rogers in his Brooklyn studio, The Greenhouse.