By Josh Pasek
Identifying non-existent trends
In February of 2008, the Republican Jewish Coalition launched a new advertising campaign called “I Used to be a Democrat.” The campaign highlights individuals who were formerly registered Democrats and have more recently registered as Republicans. While any given individual may have switched party registration, the ads are meant to convey a sentiment stated by RJC Executive Director Matt Brooks:
The ads reflect the movement we’ve witnessed for years: More and more American Jews express serious misgivings with the direction of the Democratic Party. Again and again, they are finding that the Republican Party better represents their concerns ranging from national security to the well-being of the state of Israel. (1)
While Brooks may claim to have witnessed such a migration, polling data has not. In the American Jewish Committee 2007 Annual Survey of American Jewish Opinion, 58% of American Jews identified as Democrats, down only one percent from the 59% recorded in the 2000 Annual Survey of American Jewish Opinion. The difference is well within the survey’s margin of error. (2)
What transformed the “I Used to be a Democrat” voters from Republicans to Democrats according to the ads? In two cases it was 9/11, and in two cases, the transformation is linked to Joe Lieberman (one case mentions both). While these events may have driven the three listed individuals to reregister, suggesting that a broader change is afoot runs directly contrary to available data. Indeed, there has been no noticeable drop in Jewish Democratic registration over a time period spanning both events.
Using ‘Opinion’ to Justify Inaccuracies
The three ads are all written in first person by the subjects. For this reason, misleading and inaccurate statements by the authors can be presented at face value and avoid challenges of accuracy. Shari Blecher, one of the authors, states that “the Democrats’ proposition for universal healthcare and single payer system will have a devastating effect on our current access to healthcare.”
The national Democratic Party does not advocate for a single payer health care system. In the 2004 Democratic Party Platform (the most recent available as the 2008 platform has not come out yet), the party proposed “offer[ing] individuals and businesses tax credits to make quality, reliable health coverage more affordable” (3). That is hardly a single payer plan. Of the plans proposed by the 2008 presidential candidates, only one plan was single-payer, the plan proposed by Dennis Kucinich, who received only a marginal share of the votes. A lengthy discussion of the nature of Presidential candidate health plans is provided by the National Physicians Alliance (4). It is unclear what proposition Shari Blecher is referring to.
This article refers to the “I Used to be a Democrat” advertising campaign as announced on February 12, 2008 by the Republican Jewish Coalition. The referenced article can be found at http://www.rjchq.org/news.asp?FormMode=Detail&id=1279. Fact checking was completed as of the date of this posting.
