Congressman Tom Lantos--Holocaust Survivor and Chair of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs--Died 2/11/08

Washington, DC, February 11, 2008 — Congressman Tom Lantos (D-San Mateo, San Francisco), 80, passed away this morning due to complications from cancer at Bethesda Naval Medical Center.

Elected to office in 1980, Lantos was Chairman of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs and one of the country's leading champions of human rights. His commitment to this issue was forged when, as a young man, he lost nearly his entire family in the Holocaust.

Today he was surrounded by his wife, two daughters, and many of his 18 grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.

After being diagnosed with esophageal cancer in late December, Lantos announced on January 2 that he would not seek reelection. He said at the time, "It is only in the United States that a penniless survivor of the Holocaust and a fighter in the anti-Nazi underground could have received an education, raised a family, and had the privilege of serving the last three decades of his life as a Member of Congress. I will never be able to express fully my profoundly felt gratitude to this great country."

The only survivor of the Shoah ever elected to Congress, Tom Lantos was in his 14th term. His Democratic colleagues elected him chairman of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs in January 2007. He was also a senior member of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.

Throughout his adult life Lantos sought to be a voice for human rights and civil liberties. He and Annette Lantos, his childhood sweetheart and wife of nearly 58 years were, as Lantos put it, "full partners both in Congress and in life," and they continued their work right up to his final days. Tom Lantos was the founding co-chairman of the 24-year-old Congressional Human Rights Caucus, which Annette directed as a volunteer since its inception. He also founded the Congressional Friends of Animals Caucus.

Annette said that her husband's life was "defined by courage, optimism, and unwavering dedication to his principles and to his family."

The date for a public memorial service has not yet been set.

Jews Voted Overwhelmingly Democratic; First Mulsim in Congress

Although I don't know the cultural correct term, I would like to wish the Arabic equivelent of mazal tov to Keith Ellison, a Minnesota state legislator and lawyer who became the first Mulsim elected to Congress. He joins a number of Jewish members of Congress (many of whom are set to take leadership roles in the new Democratically-controlled Congress).
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What an election!
I saw one report that listed that Jews voted over 80% Democratic in the past election. Since I can't find the source on-line and I already deleted the email, lets just say that Jews voted overwhelmingly Democratic in yesterdays election.

An article last week broke down the support of American Jews by party and issue.
It will be interesting to see if in any of the seats where party control switched if the Jewish vote switched in large numbers. Experts say a slow move towards Republican identification in the Jewish community (which used to be almost entirely Democrats) has reversed itself.

A few weeks ago, the national Jewish organizations supporting both parties duked it out in the press about support for Israel. Like many foreign policy issues, the mainstreme of the Democratic party is almost identical with Republicans when it comes to Israel. According to a political advisor to Natan Sharansky who I had lunch with today (before he speaks tonight at Amherst), the difference between the two parties is one of nuance. The concern in the Israeli and organized American Jewish community is that the more liberal end of the Democratic party differs sharply with its more moderate peers on Israel. We will see.

There has been a growing trend in organizations like AIPAC to align themselves clearly with the Republicans. Or at least some have argued that this trend exists. While I am no expert on the subject, I suspect it stems from the prevelence of Jews in Neo-Con organizations. Over the last few weeks as a Democratic take over of at least the house seemed more likely, many Jewish organizations have been striving to show they are bi-partisan. I expect we will see that continue. What a changed world from a few months ago.

Stock market pundits are predicting gridlock (which is good for the market)! Let's wait and see what happens to issues of importance to the Jewish community.

Rabbi Bruce

Jewish Outreach by Dems & GOP; Voter Info By State

For most of the twentieth century, Jews voted overwhelmingly for Democrats. Over the last few decades, there has been a slow shifting as more Jews voted for Republicans (I suspect a lot of them were "Reagan Democrats" but I haven't looked into the statistics too carefully). There have always been prominent Jewish leaders in both parties, but the average Jew was usually a Democrat. That is certainly still the case although each party disputes the data favored by the others. Republicans have been trying to use Jews as a swing-vote in tight races.
I leave my well-educated, independent-minded readers to decide for yourself.

Here are sites for Jewish organizations that support each major party:
National Jewish Democratic Council
Republican Jewish Coalition

National Party Info:
Democratic National Committee Faith-In-Action
Republican National Committee Faith & Values Team

Time to get educated, get active, and then VOTE!
RB

Procedures, Initiatives, Issues, and Elections By State:
o Alabama
o Alaska
o Arizona
o Arkansas
o California
o Colorado
o Connecticut
o Delaware
o District of Columbia
o Florida
o Georgia
o Hawaii
o Idaho
o Illinois
o Indiana
o Iowa
o Kansas
o Kentucky
o Louisiana
o Maine
o Maryland
o Massachusetts
o Michigan
o Minnesota
o Mississippi
o Missouri
o Montana
o Nebraska
o Nevada
o New Hampshire
o New Jersey
o New Mexico
o New York
o North Carolina
o North Dakota
o Ohio
o Oklahoma
o Oregon
o Pennsylvania
o Rhode Island
o South Carolina
o South Dakota
o Tennessee
o Texas
o Utah
o Vermont
o Virginia
o Washington
o West Virginia
o Wisconsin
o Wyoming