Michael Goodwin: The bigotry against Israel is the latest political agenda conspired by Democrats
One of the most infuriating signs of our troubled era is that you don’t have to dig very far into the political barrel to find the antisemites.
Although they have made deeper and broader inroads among Democrats, especially on the far-left, disheartening numbers of Republicans, independents and erstwhile conservatives are also guilty of embracing the ancient hatred.
A common sign among the haters these days is the crackpot claim that Jews, — Israeli and American, — hoodwinked President Trump into joining Israel’s war against Iran.
According to this theory, Trump and his White House were like so many innocent lambs being led to slaughter.
What the president should have done, his detractors insist, was have America mind its own damn business.
Most never cared for his America First idea, but now they condemn him for, as they see it, violating his vow.
Had he done what they wanted, the argument goes, Trump would have realized we have no reason to be concerned about Iran’s decades-long quest for regional domination.
Defense shield
All the more so because we’re energy independent, and we’ve given and sold Israel and the Gulf Arab states most of our latest and best weapons, including fighter jets, missile defenses and communication systems.
So Iran’s neighbors have the tools to do the job they now want the U.S. to do for them.
Besides, if Israel has nukes, who are they or we or they to say Iran doesn’t have the right to get them?
If Israel wants to stop Iran, go ahead, but leave us out of it, the critics say.
Neither should we be concerned, they argue, about Iran’s intercontinental ballistic missile program. Never mind that it was designed eventually to fire nukes at the “Little Satan,” — Israel, — and then at us, the “Great Satan.”
Since the day it seized power nearly 50 years ago, the regime’s obsession has been destroying Israel and the US.
Such cold, hard facts don’t deter the blame-the-Jews mob.
Nor are they concerned that nobody knew, until two weeks ago, how advanced the missile program actually is.
The realization came when Iran fired missiles more than 2,000 miles away at a joint U.K and U.S military base in the Indian Ocean.
The incident proved that the Islamist government was well on its way to being able to reach much of the world, including all of Europe and perhaps soon, the East Coast of the United States.
It’s not the first time conventional wisdom has been certain —and wrong.
Remember “Star Wars!?”
That was the scoffers’ way of mocking Ronald Reagan’s vision for a missile defense shield, which he unveiled in a 1983 speech.
It would never happen, they insisted.
Thankfully, Reagan didn’t listen to them, and the latest versions of the defense systems are saving countless lives of Americans, Israelis and others in the current conflict.
Yet a new generation of know-it-all idiots insist America would be fine if we just took care of our own business and let everyone else take care of theirs.
Especially when it comes to the Israelis.
It is not a coincidence that many of the anti-Israel types were foolishly claiming last year that the Jewish state was guilty of committing genocide in Gaza and that it was using starvation as a weapon.
The believers, including most of the American media, swallowed hook, line and sinker the daily lies of the Gazan’s Health Ministry.
You know antisemitism is going bipartisan when the Young Republicans chapter at the University of Florida is embroiled in a civil war, with some members accusing others of being Nazis.
Worse, a GOP gubernatorial candidate is involved in the battle.
James Fishback is a fierce critic of Trump’s support for Israel and has praised Nicholas Fuentes, whom the American Jewish Committee labels a white supremacist, antisemite and Holocaust denier.
One thing the antisemites will not admit is that, a month into the war against Iran, Israel has proven to be not only a true ally, but also a mighty and exceptionally skilled one.
Its intelligence gathering is probably the best in the world, and its ability to track Hezbollah and Iranian leaders into their bedrooms and deliver precise kill shots is remarkable.
Then there is that extraordinary exploding-pager operation carried out simultaneously against thousands of Hezbollah soldiers in Lebanon.
Over time, the planning and success should become as storied as the tale of theGreek Trojan Horse, with the distinction that the Israeli operation really happened.
Still, an important and consistent aspect of antisemitism is that it involves a double standard. And that condition is certainly present in the current situation.
Consider that, absent from the commentary and denunciation of America’s role in the Iran war is the admission that Israel is not alone in wanting us to stick around and help finish the job.
Who else is pushing for that?
The Gulf Arab states, meaning Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain and Kuwait.
Each has been the target of thousands of Iranian drones and missiles, most of which have been intercepted, but some have caused significant damage and deaths.
For example, an attack on Qatar’s natural gas facilities knocked out 17% of its export capacity at an estimated cost of $20 billion, NBC reported.
Iranian attacks also targeted a Saudi port on the Red Sea, an Emirates port and a Saudi oil field and two refineries.
Each will take years to repair, with the cost contributing to higher global energy prices.
A key difference between those countries and Israel is that they have not provided meaningful military help in the battle against Iran.
Arab states’ plea
Despite being attacked almost daily by Iranian weapons and issuing statements of protest, the Arab states are content to let America and Israel do their fighting for them.
As the Jerusalem Post reported, Arab states are “telling the US that any deal with Tehran should do more than end the war.”
Reuters says the same nations are urging America not to stop until it permanently curbs Iran’s missile system and diminishes its other capabilities.
Those countries did not urge America to start the war, but they don’t want it stop yet out of a fear that letting Iran’s power survive will make it a permanent threat to their infrastructure and economies.
Where’s the angry claim that Trump has been hoodwinked by the Arabs into spilling American blood and treasure for them?
Why is there no demand from the antisemites that the Arabs fend for themselves?
Sadly, the reason is a very old story: No Jews, no news.
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