After Sen. Joe Lieberman’s speech at the RNC, I predicted that there would be attacks on the blogs, especially in the comments section, that vilify him in anti-Semitic terms. Lieberman would be portrayed as really representing Israel’s interests in the more subtle attacks, and as a treacherous Jew in the more direct. Here is some of what I found-
From the comments on Ben Smith’s Politico post, “Gibbs Slams Lieberman“
Leiberman beleives that McCain’s policy of keeping troops in the M.E. indefinately is better for Israel’s security. That is the reason, the one and only reason that Leiberman supports McCain. So, you have to ask yourself, what is it when someone puts another nation’s interests above ours? Treason.
Lieberman should just cut out the middleman and go run for Israeli PM.
How can you question Joe Lieberman’s patriotism? He clearly loves his country. The only question is which country?
Lieberman (I-Israel) is the most pathetic figure in American politics. You can have him Repugs! Enjoy!
I hear Liebs may run as Bob Barr’s veep now unless Israel calls offers this clown a cabinet poosition as Secretary of War. It’s all he cares about.
On John Nichols post, “Lieberman’s Partisan ’Bipartisanship’“, on The Nation’s “The Beat”, commenters expressed similar sentiments:
”Country first.”
Aye, but which country?
I didn’t like ol’ Joe as democrat. I don’t like ol’ Joe as an independent, and I will not like ol’ Joe as secretary of defense for ol’ John. These two ol’ characters want to take over the middle east and turn it over to Isreal.
Lieberman is a shill for right-wing AIPAC Jews, and his ONLY interest and role in American politics is ensuring BOTH parties swear allegiance to the right-wing Jew agenda.
He is an absolute embarrassment to anyone who loves the democratic process.
I was hoping his Republican masters would make Lieberman put on a little show after the speech… perhaps some softshoe to send the delegates home with. Make him earn those 20 silver pieces!
From the comments on Matthew Rothschild’s “Benedict Joseph” from The Progressive-
In this role Lieberman resembles no character so much as Rabbi Bengelsdorf in Philip Roth’s The Plot Against America, who shamelessly sucks up to Charles Lindbergh.
Ever since Likud became terrified of Carter after Camp David, wealthy conservative Jews and neocons have tended to move to the Republicans, first having a big role in Reagan’s foreign policy, and actually creating and botching the war in Iraq as, in effect, a proxy war for Israel, or at least Likud. Conservative Likud/Israel-firsters, I believe, have been in charge of BOTH Hillary’s and McCain’s campaigns. When Hillary lost to Obama, they became even more determined to destroy Obama by any means necessary using McCain, who has obviously, on the face of it, always been a ventriloquist’s dummy for Lieberman (correcting him on “Sunni” vs. “Shia,” in the most egregious instance), just as Bush II was a ventriloquist’s dummy, in effect, for the Wolfowitz crowd that gave us the fiasco of the war. Thank God for progressive Jews in America who are still fighting the good fight for liberalism and the best Jewish moral and political traditions. Keep up the good work slamming the number one traitor to all the above in American politics today, Lieberman. I pray Obama and plenty of Dem senators come in in January and tell Lieberman where to go with his Likud-first worldview.
Des Moines Register, “Yepsen: Lieberman shows courage with pro-McCain speech”
Joe Lieberman is a Jew whose first and only alligience is to Israel. How do you think he was able to walk out on the Democratic party and still get elected.support? Good guess, you are learning.
If you study history you know that their is the Democratic, Republican, and Independent parties and the Jews.. If you think for a minute that they do not wield that kind of power, and work for it continuously, then ask yourself how come we support this tiny nation and not others.
The Jews have committed themselves to do just exactly what they are doing today: Seek power and control in government, press and media, entertainment-Movies, banks and money institutions, business and industry etd.
They said they were going to do it, and are now doing it in spades.
It really disgusts me to see the Liberman fish eating grin.
It took about as much courage for Lieberman to give his speech last night as it takes any soldier to do what his officers tell him to do. Lieberman is simply doing the will of Likud, and its neocon thinkers and conservative Jewish money men. When Lieberman didn’t make it with Gore, he decided that the best career move for Lieberman was to do all he could to move the Democratic Party in the direction of Likud. Hillary was totally on board with Likud, ready, like McCain, to “obliterate” Iran whenever needed by Likud. Lieberman’s job was to do all he could to elect McCain for Likud, a much more vital (and no doubt VERY well rewarded) job, now that Hillary’s out and Likud is facing Obama, whom it doesn’t trust at all. So I don’t see how anyone can argue that it was courageous for Lieberman to, in effect, take the Likud money and run last night. It’s just his very well paid JOB. He’s a Likudnik, not an American first and foremost.
The pattern becomes obvious. While comments pages are always fora for racist comments and mindless anonymous hate speech, there is a subcurrent of anger at Lieberman expressed in implicit and sometimes explicit anti-Semitic terms- disloyal, interested in money, under the control of Israel or international Jewry.
While there is still dangerous anti-Semitism across the spectrum, the far left variety especially potent and vocal right now.
Pretty sad that such an old trope should take root again. Many people seem to have an out of control need to demonize Jews. I can see that these people must feel pretty powerless and helpless, but what gets me is their excitement at rediscovering the Protocols revealing their eagerness to believe anything bad about Jews. Mugs. Easy marks for hate peddlers. Pathetic.
Comment by Lorenz Gude — September 7, 2008 @ 12:06 pm
I also want to salute Joe Lieberman as a great American. I call myself a Lieberman Democrat because he stood for his country when his party abandoned it for narrow partisan advantage. The Democrats are not unique. The other party had just gotten done attacking Bill Clinton for narrow partisan reasons failing to notice they were also attacking the institution of the presidency and diminishing their country. I salute those Republicans in the senate who voted against Impeachment for the same kind of reason I salute Lieberman. But Lieberman stood alone and was purged from his party. Lieberman supported the Iraq war when it was unpopular because he took the trouble to go to Iraq and like John McCain see for himself that the situation was difficult but not hopeless. His fellow Democrats were too willing to see their country defeated - proclaim it prematurely - for the sake of defeating a President they despised. Lieberman didn’t support the war because he was Jewish any more than John McCain did. He, like McCain, understood it before both the President and the Congressional Democrats did and acted accordingly. He is an American hero.
Comment by Lorenz Gude — September 7, 2008 @ 11:40 pm
Tolerant Progressives Sound Weirdly Anti-Semitic When Raging Against Lieberman…
I was skeptical too, since this is a community that has such a great track record on these issues. But Richard Landes seems to have some pretty compelling examples: After Sen. Joe Lieberman’s speech at the RNC, I predicted……
Trackback by Mere Rhetoric — September 10, 2008 @ 7:52 am
Joe Lieberman is concerned with the welfare of one country and that country is Israel. This is why he is and has been kissing G.W. and mccains (ASS). He loves that we are over in Iraq killing innocent civilians for his beloved israel
Comment by g. m — November 3, 2008 @ 4:23 pm