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ETHNIC PREFERENCE
Jews in Iowa opt for Kerry
Although all major candidates in the Democratic presidential primary have been vetted for their Jewish affinity and/or affiliation, the one Iowa's Jews decided to select as being the most viable against a pro-Zionist incumbent George W. is the junior senator from Massachusetts. Whatever the final result at the end of the political process, however, the Jews are now setting things up so they can't possibly lose.
Kerry
machine and concerns about Dean sway Iowa Jews By RON KAMPEAS WASHINGTON—Jewish voters in Iowa turned to Sen. John Kerry in large numbers because of a well-oiled machine that targeted Jews—and because of ongoing concerns about Howard Dean, activists there say. Alan Koslow, a Dean activist who hosted a caucus in West Des Moines—where many of the state's Jews live—said he and his wife were the only Jews in the room Monday night voting for Dean, the former Vermont governor who was the early Democratic front-runner in Iowa. "I was absolutely shocked," Koslow said. "The Jewish vote went so completely to Kerry, from what I could ascertain. He made a strong impression." Koslow attributed the performance of Kerry (D-Mass.) to eight young Jewish campaign staffers who targeted the community. Koslow also had three helpers but said he only reached about 400 of Iowa's 1,300 known Jewish families in the days before the election. An evening for Jewish voters that Koslow hosted last week with Rep. Jan Schakowsky, a Jewish Democrat from neighboring Illinois, attracted far fewer people than expected. "I expected 100; about 45 came," he said. "About a quarter of those were people who supported other candidates and who were upset at Dean's perceived positions on Israel." Dean once called for the United States to take an "even-handed" policy in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and once referred to Hamas terrorists as "soldiers." Dean says he now regrets using the term "even-handed," explaining that he simply had wanted to advocate greater U.S. involvement in the Middle East. He also says he used the term "soldiers" to justify Israel's right to target Hamas leaders for assassination. Schakowsky and Dean's spokesman, Matt Dorf, made those points at the meeting in Iowa, but it didn't help much on Monday night. Paulee Lipsman, a senior official in the state legislature who backed Kerry, was elated with the results—a welcome high after the heartbreak she said she experienced when Sen. Joseph Lieberman (D-Conn.) opted not to run in Iowa. Lipsman had co-chaired Lieberman's campaign in the state. Israel played a role in her decision to back Kerry, but Lipsman said the bottom line for her, as for many Iowa Democrats, was that she believed Kerry's extensive Senate experience and his background as a Vietnam War hero made him the best Democrat to challenge President Bush. "Bottom line: He's the one who can be elected in November," she said. Kerry was seen as the strongest performer at a synagogue event in Des Moines in November, and several congregants told him afterward that he had swung their support away from other candidates. Dean and Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-Ohio) also addressed the crowd. Kerry told the crowd how he had shouted "Am Yisrael Chai" from atop Masada, and he was the only one of the three to invoke the Holocaust, when he called for more thoughtful U.S. involvement in human-rights issues. Such particulars—and Kerry's animated delivery—registered with the crowd. "John Kerry has been to Masada," David Moskowitz said at the synagogue event. "He knows the issues."
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2. Fleet Boston Financial Corp., Boston—$172,387 3. AOL Time Warner Inc., New York (Michael Eisner)—$134,960 4. Hale and Dorr LLP, Boston—$123,258 5. Hill, Holiday, Connors, Cosmopulos Inc., Boston—$119,300 6. Harvard University, Cambridge—$108,700 7. Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP, New York—$105,150 8. Robins, Kaplan, Miller & Ciresi LLP, Minneapolis—$103,450 9. Goldman Sachs Group Inc., New York—$100,000 10. Piper Rudnick, Baltimore—$92,300 SOURCE: The Center for Public Integrity, Washington, D.C.
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