Over The Line

For John, BLUF:  This is not really about peace or war.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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Senator Chuck Schumer, Democrat of New York, has created a problem for the White House by saying he is opposed to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) (Iran nuclear deal).  Word from The Hill is that the Left is outraged by his stance.  There is even talk of trying to block his replacing Senator Harry Reid as the Minority Leader.

It is at the point that the President has compared GOP and other opponents of the agreement of being like the Iranian hardliners.  Here is the CNN take, by reporter Tom LoBianco, "Obama defends comparison between Iran hardliners and GOP".

The problem is, Jews who are opposed to the agreement believe that they are being lumped in there with the GOP and it is causing divisions.  The Tablet♠ Editorial Board has suggested that President Obama is crossing a line in trying to sell this deal:

What we increasingly can’t stomach—and feel obliged to speak out about right now—is the use of Jew-baiting and other blatant and retrograde forms of racial and ethnic prejudice as tools to sell a political deal, or to smear those who oppose it. Accusing Senator Schumer of loyalty to a foreign government is bigotry, pure and simple. Accusing Senators and Congressmen whose misgivings about the Iran deal are shared by a majority of the U.S. electorate of being agents of a foreign power, or of selling their votes to shadowy lobbyists, or of acting contrary to the best interests of the United States, is the kind of naked appeal to bigotry and prejudice that would be familiar in the politics of the pre-Civil Rights Era South.

The use of terms like "Jew baiting" and "naked appeal to bigotry" suggest the Editors are in high dudgeon.  This is not good for our nation.

I don't particularly like the agreement, but I wouldn't oppose it.  At the same time I don't think it would be the end of the world if it was turned down.  What I fear is that the President will get so wrapped up in this thing that he will end up like President Woodrow Wilson, losing the whole ball of wax.  At the end of the day this should be a win for the President, unless he makes it personal and drives people to oppose it, on principle.

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

♠  No, not the Catholic publication from London, but a respected US Jewish publication.