Political Insider: Pennsylvania Race: A Jewish Yawn?
Posted By James BesserPolitical Insider: Pennsylvania Race: A Jewish Yawn?
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Jewish pundits continue to write about the potentially big impact of the Jewish vote in next week's Pennsylvania Democratic primary, but you can tell their hearts aren't in it.
The reason: almost nobody expects this latest skirmish in the Democratic war of attrition will settle things between Sen. Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama.
Polls suggest there hasn't been much movement in recent days. Clinton remains on top - by a modest margin, according to some polls, a slim one according to others.
But in the end, it's clear Obama will come away with almost as many delegates, enough to keep his lead in the all-important race for votes at this summer's convention.
That means the race is increasingly coming down to a battle to win over the hundreds of "superdelegates" who aren't bound by primary results.
Some are arguing that that fight, too, has a Jewish component (what issue doesn't?), but that may be a little silly.
Sure, a disproportionate number of superdeleges are Jewish, since a disproportionate number of Democratic activists are Jewish.
But while issues such as Israel, Rev. Wright and Louis Farrakhan may play big in primary elections, this fight is really about insider issues: which candidate is seen as having the best chance of winning the White House for the Democrats in November, who's the best wheeler and dealer.
Sorry, folks, but the race for the Democratic nomination is increasingly lacking in Jewish content - unless you're interested in the longstanding reality that Jews are heavily involved in party affairs.