One of the uglier forms of modern American anti-Semitism takes form in the belief that Jewish Americans are more loyal to Israel than to the United States. Iowa Republican Rep. Steve King has managed to take this form of anti-Semitism to its next level. King so takes for granted that American Jews
should be loyal to Israel first that
he's baffled that they aren't:
Rep. Steve King (R-IA) criticized "Jews in America" who, in an effort to align themselves with President Obama's stance on Israel, are "Democrats first and Jewish second," BuzzFeed reported on Friday.
King's comments were made during an interview on Friday with Boston Herald Radio about the members of Congress who refused to attend Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's speech to Congress on March 3.
"Well, there were some 50 or so Democrats that, that decided they would boycott the president's speech," King said. "Here's what I don't understand, I don't understand how Jews in America can be Democrats first and Jewish second and support Israel along the line of just following their President."
Um.
There are so many ways to go with this. Not that someone with a cantaloupe where his brain should be is capable of understanding, but let's try explaining this as one would to a child. A very small and not particularly bright child. Perhaps "Jews in America" can be Democrats first because to whatever degree they hold national loyalties they are loyal to the United States first. Because Israel is a foreign country and Jews in America are, you know, American.
Perhaps "Jews in America" can be Democrats first because they feel that the Democratic Party in the two-party system of their home country (you know—the United States) best represents their political values.
Head below the fold for more.
Perhaps "Jews in America" can be Democrats first because Israel just isn't that high a priority to them, with the economy, health care, Social Security and Medicare, terrorism and national security, ISIS/Syria/Iraq, the environment, education, and taxes all rating higher, and Israel barely registering at all.
But when called out for his bigotry by a Jewish congressman, King doubled down:
Rep. Steve King (R-IA) seemed to double down on questioning "how Jews in America can be Democrats."
@RepSteveIsrael: Real men make such requests face 2 face & man 2 man. I defend Israelis from Leftists & misogynists. pic.twitter.com/GvX5XDftHx
— Steve King (@SteveKingIA) March 21, 2015
That back and forth with Rep. Steve Israel (D-NY) follows King criticizing "Jews in America" who align themselves with President Barack Obama and the Democratic party. He made those comments on earlier on Friday.
Where to begin?
First, King seems to think it was dishonorable or uncourageous of Rep. Israel not to call him out face to face. And he seems to think it's a manhood issue. Because he seems to think women are less honorable or less courageous than men. But then we already know that he misses the days when only male property owners could vote. Which makes his inclusion of the word "misogynist" a little more difficult to figure out. But rather than damage our own brains by trying too hard to understand the workings of what King uses for one, let's just go with his not understanding what the word "misogyny" means. Perhaps it's just that he's heard it applied to himself so many times that he knows it's a bad word, and he wanted to try it out, just to see how it works.
And it's nice that King feels a need to defend Israelis from leftists. American leftists. American Jewish leftists. Because King apparently thinks defending the foreign nation of Israel is more important than respecting the views of Americans. Who did, after all, twice elect Barack Obama to the presidency, who do support Obama's negotiations with Iran, and who opposed the Republicans for going behind the president's back and inviting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to speak to Congress. Republicans such as manly man Steve King.