{"id":28147,"date":"2016-01-22T02:47:26","date_gmt":"2016-01-22T08:47:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/?p=28147"},"modified":"2016-01-22T04:28:33","modified_gmt":"2016-01-22T10:28:33","slug":"bernie-sanders-jewishness-a-non-issue-for-iowa-voters","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/bernie-sanders-jewishness-a-non-issue-for-iowa-voters\/","title":{"rendered":"Bernie Sanders&#8217; Jewishness a non-issue for Iowa voters"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>By JOSH TAPPER<\/p>\n<p>SIOUX CITY, Iowa (JTA) \u2014 On a frigid night in what has been an unusually cold winter here, Bernie Sanders packed more than 1,200 people into the resplendent Orpheum Theatre, a nearly 90-year-old venue in this western Iowa outpost across the Missouri River from Nebraska.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_28154\" style=\"width: 310px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/bernie-west.jpg\" target=\"_blank\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-28154\" class=\"wp-image-28154 size-medium lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/bernie-west-300x198.jpg\" alt=\"DES MOINES, IA - NOVEMBER 14:  Philosopher Cornel West (R) embraces Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) at a watch party for the second Democratic presidential debate November 14, 2015 in Des Moines, Iowa. Sanders joined Hillary Clinton and Martin O'Malley in the party's second presidential debate.  (Photo by Alex Wong\/Getty Images)\" width=\"300\" height=\"198\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/bernie-west-300x198.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/bernie-west-1024x675.jpg 1024w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 300px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 300\/198;\" \/><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-28154\" class=\"wp-image-28154 size-medium\" src=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/bernie-west-300x198.jpg\" alt=\"DES MOINES, IA - NOVEMBER 14:  Philosopher Cornel West (R) embraces Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) at a watch party for the second Democratic presidential debate November 14, 2015 in Des Moines, Iowa. Sanders joined Hillary Clinton and Martin O'Malley in the party's second presidential debate.  (Photo by Alex Wong\/Getty Images)\" width=\"300\" height=\"198\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/bernie-west-300x198.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/bernie-west-1024x675.jpg 1024w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/noscript><\/a><\/p>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-28154\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Philosopher Cornel West, right, embracing Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders in Des Moines, Iowa, Nov. 14, 2015. (Photo by Alex Wong\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>After taking the stage late Tuesday night, the independent Vermont senator vying for the Democratic presidential nomination launched into a nearly 30-minute exegesis on the American economy in typically stem-winding fashion, railing against wealth inequality before turning his attention to the noisome effects of money in politics, paid family leave and other frequent themes of his raucous stump speeches.<\/p>\n<p>The Brooklyn-born Sanders\u2019 brash delivery and in-your-face moxie might seem out of sorts in idyllic, largely rural Iowa, but the style is resonating with Democratic voters here. Indeed in liberal-leaning Des Moines, the state capital, it is mostly Sanders signs that pepper the snowy front lawns in the city\u2019s central neighborhoods. And it is the face of Sanders \u2014 actually 15 of them \u2014 that adorns a T-shirt sold by Raygun, a popular local clothing store with a wide selection of caucus-themed apparel. Nearly 250 of the $39 novelty shirts have been sold since early October.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s like your grandpa is running for president,\u201d said Lauren Matysik, a Raygun graphic designer. \u201cIt\u2019s so cute.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>While concerns have been raised that Sanders&#8217; crotchety zayde image \u2013 described recently as \u201cvery Jewish\u201d by one political strategist \u2013 could ultimately serve as a handicap in a general election, there is agreement here among both Jews and non-Jews that Sanders\u2019 religion is a moot point this early in election season.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHis affect is very Jewish, but I don\u2019t hear a lot of people talking about it,\u201d said Steven Edelman-Blank, the rabbi at Tifereth Israel, a Conservative synagogue in Des Moines. \u201cIt\u2019s significant how little of an issue his Jewishness is. I don\u2019t hear a lot of people backing Bernie because of that.\u201d<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_28156\" style=\"width: 310px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/sanders-shirt.jpg\" target=\"_blank\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-28156\" class=\"wp-image-28156 size-medium lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/sanders-shirt-300x200.jpg\" alt=\"sanders-shirt\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/sanders-shirt-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/sanders-shirt-1024x683.jpg 1024w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 300px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 300\/200;\" \/><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-28156\" class=\"wp-image-28156 size-medium\" src=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/sanders-shirt-300x200.jpg\" alt=\"sanders-shirt\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/sanders-shirt-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/sanders-shirt-1024x683.jpg 1024w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/noscript><\/a><\/p>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-28156\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">A Bernie Sanders T-shirt on sale at Raygun, a popular clothing store in Des Moines, Iowa. (Josh Tapper)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>Dennis Goldford, a Drake University political scientist and frequent commentator on Iowa politics, said there is little reason for Iowans to associate Sanders\u2019 persona at the microphone with his Jewish identity. Unlike some other prominent Jewish politicians, Sanders does not wear his religion on his sleeve. And Sanders&#8217; Brooklyn accent does not scream \u201cJewish\u201d in Iowa the way it might elsewhere.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHis Jewishness is relatively invisible to Iowans at large,\u201d said Goldford, a member of Temple B\u2019nai Jeshurun, a Reform congregation in Des Moines. \u201cIn various venues it just doesn\u2019t come up, and he doesn\u2019t mention it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Perhaps the only time it has come up in Iowa was after a speech hosted by the Jewish Federation of Des Moines in September. Goldford, who moderated the event, recalled that an audience member asked Sanders \u201cwhat impact his Jewishness has on his political views.\u201d Goldford sensed that the question caught Sanders off-guard.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe did not seem to be uncomfortable,\u201d Goldford said. \u201cBut he seemed not used to answering a question like that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>With the Iowa caucuses less than two weeks away, Sanders, backed by an extensive grassroots campaign, is riding a groundswell of Democratic support in the state. Last week, a Des Moines Register poll showed Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton leading Sanders by only 2 percentage points. Another poll, by Quinnipiac University, placed Sanders ahead 49\u201344, a surprising tally considering the senator was suffering a 9-point deficit as recently as December.<\/p>\n<p>Tony Ewing, who owns a bed-and-breakfast near Drake, said Iowa\u2019s Democrats \u201cdon\u2019t notice\u201d and \u201cdon\u2019t care\u201d about their candidates\u2019 religious identities.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cEspecially in Iowa, people tend to stick with the issues and topics of the day,\u201d Ewing said. \u201c[Sanders\u2019s] faith has never come up in any conversations I\u2019ve had, and I\u2019ve talked with a lot of folks.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>At Maccabee\u2019s, a kosher deli in Des Moines, the proprietor and local Chabad rabbi, Yossi Jacobson, riffed on Sanders\u2019s growing appeal. He showered the senator with effusive praise \u2014 \u201cHillary\u2019s \u2018been there, done that,\u2019\u201d \u2014 and asserted that Sanders&#8217; religion does matter, just not in the way Iowans, or even Sanders himself, might realize.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBernie is giving hope to so many that we are all equal,\u201d Jacobson said. \u201cHe is bringing a timeless message of what Jews always knew to be true \u2014 that we are all equal.\u201d<\/p>\n<div style=\"padding-bottom:20px; padding-top:10px;\" class=\"hupso-share-buttons\"><!-- Hupso Share Buttons - https:\/\/www.hupso.com\/share\/ --><a class=\"hupso_toolbar\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hupso.com\/share\/\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-src=\"https:\/\/static.hupso.com\/share\/buttons\/share-medium.png\" style=\"border:0px; padding-top: 5px; float:left;\" alt=\"Share Button\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" class=\"lazyload\" \/><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/static.hupso.com\/share\/buttons\/share-medium.png\" style=\"border:0px; padding-top: 5px; float:left;\" alt=\"Share Button\"\/><\/noscript><\/a><script type=\"text\/javascript\">var hupso_services_t=new Array(\"Twitter\",\"Facebook\",\"Google Plus\",\"Pinterest\",\"Linkedin\",\"Tumblr\",\"Email\");var hupso_background_t=\"#EAF4FF\";var hupso_border_t=\"#66CCFF\";var hupso_toolbar_size_t=\"medium\";var hupso_image_folder_url = \"\";var hupso_url_t=\"\";var hupso_title_t=\"Bernie%20Sanders%27%20Jewishness%20a%20non-issue%20for%20Iowa%20voters\";<\/script><script type=\"text\/javascript\" src=\"https:\/\/static.hupso.com\/share\/js\/share_toolbar.js\"><\/script><!-- Hupso Share Buttons --><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1884],"tags":[4841,7599,8790,8795,8788],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28147"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=28147"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28147\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":28161,"href":"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28147\/revisions\/28161"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=28147"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=28147"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=28147"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}