June 08, 2004
Ronald Reagan
I don't remember when I started becoming more conservative. I remember in tenth not believing that anyone could support Gerald Ford over Jimmy Carter; though one of my friends did. He was the only one in my class of 15 or so to do so.
But four years later, I was studying in Israel and filled out my absentee ballot for Ronald Reagan. I remember how proud I was of that vote. (I felt that way about a vote 2 other times: Voting for Ellen Sauerbrey in 1994 and for George W. Bush in 2000.) In my six votes for President I've voted for the winner five times. (Dole in 1996 was the exception.) I've also voted for Republicans five of six times. (Clinton in 1992 was the exception. My father in law still won't forgive me.)
When Reagan was elected president, I remember how happy the Israeli students in Yeshiva were. President Carter was viewed (justifiably, I think) as anti-Israel and President Reagan was viewed as friendlier. Certainly, Ronald Reagan deemed Israel a stalwart ally in the Cold War and was generally friendly to Israel as President. (There were departures such as the American condemnation of Israel's bombing the Iraqi reactor; the bombing of Beirut in 1982 and the decision to start openly talking to the PLO in 1988.)
But if support for Israel was the catalyst to make me a Republican, I soon found myself supporting many other conservative positions. Perhaps I my politics changed because I found myself agreeing with William Safire (conservative/Republican) and disagreeing with Anthony Lewis (liberal/Democrat); almost without fail.
By now I believe that lower taxes are good; less government is good; more freedom here or abroad is good. Ronald Reagan was the first Republican I voted for. Now I wonder if I will ever vote for a Democrat again.
Zocher Ha-bris
Idiots
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Where I've been mentioned
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Counterproductive
The half blood prince
Haveil Havalim #30 is up
Perceptions of Israel
Another beautiful story of redemption! I love reading these kinds of testimonies, the likes of Zell Miller, many in Reagan's own Cabinet and who can forget Darth Vader throwing Emperor Palpatine into the abyss to save Luke Skywalker? Just beautiful!
Thank you for this story of encouragement.
Posted by: Jeff Price at June 8, 2004 08:46 AMI don't think Carter was ever anti-Israel but pro-peace and in that case, anyone who is/was against trying to make peace with the Arabs would see him as being anti-Israel. Clearly Carter was and still is one of this nation's greatest statesman. And he can be credited with bring some measure of security to Israel through the Camp David accords.
As far as Reagan, he did many positive things for this country including being the catalyst for the fall of the Soviet Union. But he also made mistakes and like many Republicans before and after, made the rich richer and the poor poorer. Like all President's, Republican or Democrat, the man was far from perfect and should be viewed in just that way. As a man.
Jeff, I don't know if my political transformation is as extreme as tossing Palpatine into the abyss. I'm glad you enjoyed the post.
Rob, I never perceived President Carter as being particularly friendly toward Israel. I was not alone in that perception even at the time and that's what I was trying to convey. Can I back up my perception? No.
More recently his hostility toward Israel has clearly become manifest. And I see him less as being pro-peace as being an appeaser of tyrants.
In January 1996 he was an observer over the elections of a Palestinian president. Israel had concerns that some people may try to disrupt the elections so the government place cameras in certain polling places in order to prevent such disruptions. Carter very publicly announced that Israel intended to intimidate the Arabs and prevent them from voting and insisted that Israel remove the cameras. Embarrassed by Carter's grandstanding Israel removed the cameras. Carter, of course, ignored the very real intimidation going on.