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| Posted: October 16, 2007 |
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Abraham Foxman, Director of the Anti-Defamation League and author of "The Deadliest Lies" and John Mearsheimer, a professor at the University of Chicago and co-author of "The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy" answered your questions on the influence of the Israeli lobby in the United States. |
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| Liz Viering of Stonington, Conn., asks: |
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| Are there independent polls of Jewish Americans to see if their leaders represent the views of the majority of Jewish Americans? I find the views espoused by the American Pro-Israel Lobby and others extremely militant and out of touch with reality. |
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| John Mearsheimer responds: |
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 I don't know of any polls that address this particular issue. Nevertheless, hardly anyone disputes that the leaders of the lobby's main organizations - like the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) and the American Israeli Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) - are more hawkish than most Jewish-Americans who care deeply about Israel. It is important to point out, however, that almost all of Israel's supporters want to maintain Washington's special relationship with Israel, which means that they do not want the United States to pursue an even-handed policy towards Israel and the Palestinians and they do not want to allow the United States to withdraw aid if Israel acts in ways that are not in the American national interest. In other words, the lobby's leaders as well as the rank and file want the United States to maintain its present levels of economic, diplomatic, and military support for Israel and to continue giving that support unconditionally. |
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| Abraham Foxman responds: |
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 Despite the effort of Mearsheimer and Walt to depict the mainstream Jewish organizations as being out of touch with their own community, it isn't so. Polls of American Jews don't reflect any significant gap between their views and those of national organizations like American Israeli Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) and the Anti-Defamation League (ADL). We both support a two-state solution for the region, expect that both sides will have to compromise, and know that there can be no peace as long as terrorists and extremists have their way on the Palestinian side. Obviously, the Jewish community is highly diverse and one will find a wide range of views, from those all the way on the right who don't believe Israel should make any compromise to those all the way on the left who think the burden for a solution falls solely or mostly on Israel. For the vast majority in the middle, however, there is an understanding of the complexity of the problem and the need for a balanced solution. But there is also a recognition that there could have been a solution a long time ago and could be one soon if only the Palestinians accept the legitimacy of the Jewish state and take systematic action against the terrorists. We all look forward to that day.
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