Ralph Nader’s imagined list of political unmentionables — the issues that he believes won’t be aired unless he runs — includes one item that might be described as missing from the current campaign debate: the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Missing, that is, if “talking about” it means buying into Nader’s view that Israel is the aggressor nation. None of three main candidates takes that view. In Nader’s eyes, it seems, that means they’re not talking about it.

Nader is particularly peeved at Obama on this score. He says that Obama used to be “pro-Palestinian” before he ran for Illinois state senate, but now “he’s supporting the Israeli destruction of the tiny section called Gaza.” As Nader sees it, supporting Israel means that Obama “doesn’t have any sympathy” for Palestinian suffering.

Nader’s description of Obama’s views is, like so much else he says, a crude distortion. Yes, Obama has voiced sympathy for the suffering of Palestinians. He has also worked closely with the Jewish community to help Israel. He has made a practice of listening to both sides; that’s at the heart of his politics. He doesn’t think that sympathizing with Palestinians and supporting Israel need to be mutually exclusive. As he told a group of Jewish community leaders in Cleveland last weekend, he thinks “there is a strain within the pro-Israel community that says unless you adopt an unwavering pro-Likud approach to Israel, then you’re anti-Israel.” But, he said, “that can’t be the measure of our friendship with Israel.”

Forwarding the News

Thoughtful, balanced reporting from the Forward and around the web, bringing you updated news and analysis each day.

Terms(Required)

I agree to the Forward's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy

Email(Required)

We second that, and we’ll take it a step further: The best way to show friendship to Israel is to help it achieve peace through dialogue with the Palestinians. The candidate who does that best should be the choice of pro-Israel voters.

The Forward is free to read, but it isn’t free to produce

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward.

Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda.

At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse.

Readers like you make it all possible. We’re near the end of our Passover Fundraising Drive, and we have a very ambitious goal of $127,000 by April 21.

This is a great time to support independent Jewish journalism you rely on. Make a Passover gift today!

—  Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO

Make a Passover Gift Today!

$90 $180

$360

Other amount