Ben Carson Accused Obama of Anti-Semitism. Is He Right?
Barack Obama’s followers love to dish it out, but they can’t take it.
Since he entered the political scene, Obama’s followers have accused everyone who criticizes him of “racism.” But now the president is being accused of anti-Semitism for opposing the Israeli leadership over the Iran nuclear deal.
None other than presidential candidate Dr. Ben Carson wrote in The Jerusalem Post that Obama’s rhetoric in favor of his negotiations “was replete with coded innuendos employing standard anti-Semitic themes involving implied disloyalty and nefarious influences related to money and power.”
Two comments Obama made about the Iran deal have elicited the most backlash: “Many of the same people who argued for the war in Iraq are now making the case against the Iran nuclear deal,” and that “the lobbying that is taking place on the other side is fierce, it is well-financed, it is relentless.”
When asked about his comments yesterday, Carson told Fox News Sunday, “I think anything is anti-Semitic if it’s against the survival of a state that is surrounded by enemies and by people who want to destroy them. And to sort of ignore that and to act like everything is normal there and that these people are paranoid is anti-Semitic.” (See video below.)
What Obama said is not objectively anti-Semitic. His remarks could be read as harmless — after all, a lot of non-Jewish politicos who supported the invasion of Iraq oppose negotiations with Iran.
Then again, his words could be read as a subtle appeal to anti-Semitic sentiments.
Carson is far from the first person to draw the conclusion that Obama has a problem with Israel and/or the Jewish people. John Podhoretz accused Obama of ignoring anti-Semitic violence in the New York Post. Caroline Glick insinuated Obama was an anti-Semite in the Israeli press, and Ben Shapiro outright stated the administration is anti-Semitic in the U.S. media. The accusation has become so widespread that the Obama administration’s allies have pushed back against them publicly. But none of those other writers is running for president.
None of Carson’s adversaries is enamored of the president’s agreed framework, either, warning that it will use U.S. tax dollars to fund Islamic terrorism, and eventually allow Iran to obtain a nuclear weapon.
Sen. Ted Cruz called the negotiations “a disaster.” Sen. Lindsey Graham called it the “worst mistake” Obama has ever made (and that would have some stiff competition). Former Congresswoman Michele Bachmann said simply, “May God help us.” Even Sen. Rand Paul, the most dovish candidate running in either party, has said the deal will not pass Congressional muster.
But it was Mike Huckabee who turned the most heads by saying that Obama’s Iran deal “would take the Israelis and march them to the door of the oven.”
However, J Street – a lobbying group closely alligned with George Soros – is pressuring Congress to endorse the agreement. And President Obama has condemned anti-Semitism in his own push for negotiations with Iran. Historically, he has had such good relations with the Jewish community throughout his political career that he has been dubbed the “first Jewish president.”
Abe Foxman, who recently stepped aside as leader of the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) said, “I don’t think any of it is intentional,” but “some of us in the [Jewish] community are troubled the messaging will be used and abused by bigots.”
Which picture is correct? God only knows – and if Obama really is making an appeal to hatred, God will judge.
I don’t like casual accusations that leftists are anti-Semitic any more than I like baseless allegations that Christians “hate gays,” that pro-lifers are “misogynistic,” or anyone who disagrees with Al Sharpton is “racist.” But just because racism has been used as a slur against all enemies of the president’s policies doesn’t mean there aren’t real racists. Just because not every anti-Israeli sentiment is motivated by hatred doesn’t mean none of them are.
What do you think about Obama’s remarks? Was Carson quick to judge, or was he right on?
