By Joel Magalnick, Editor, JTNews
Like many of their Republican counterparts who already hold positions in Congress, the four GOP candidates in Washington’s eighth district have expressed staunch support for Israel as a Jewish state and an important ally to the United States in the Middle East.
JTNews spoke with the four candidates to discuss some of the issues that affect Jewish voters in the area that spans from Bellevue to Black Diamond, parts of Redmond and Woodinville, and includes Hunts Point and Mercer Island.
“Put simply, Israel is America’s best friend and only reliable ally in the Middle East,” wrote candidate and current state senator Luke Esser in a position piece on American-Israeli relations.
“It’s been clear to me what Israel has been up against for a long, long time,” he said, adding that the security barrier that has been under construction for the past year is essential in keeping Israel’s citizens safe.
“The fence is being put up for a very real reason – to stop all the homicide bombing attacks in Israel in recent years,” Esser said. “My impression is that leaders of Israel are happy to talk about bringing [it] down when there is a new leadership in place representing the Palestinian people that is truly interested in a peaceful coexistence.”
His paper also pledged to increase economic ties between Israel and Washington State as well as a promise to officially visit the Jewish State during his first two-year term.
Like Esser, candidate Diane Tebelius put her position on Israel in writing at the beginning of her campaign. She said she met with the American-Israel Public Affairs Committee, which was “one of the first organizations I called.”
What Israel brings to the region in terms of security and stability is of vital importance to U.S. interests, Tebelius said.
“I believe there has to be strategic cooperation between the United States and Israel,” she noted, “and I intend to enthusiastically support existing cooperative efforts between Israel and the United States.”
Though not ever elected to political office, Tebelius has a high profile in the Republican Party and her district, with a long list of credentials that range from national committeewoman for the party since 2000 to co-chairing the 8th District’s 2000 Bush campaign and Slade Gorton’s failed reelection bid. Her platform includes helping to grow small and medium-sized businesses while limiting the size of government, in addition to trying to bring civility and bipartisanship back to the House floor.
“One of the things I bring to this campaign is an expertise and understanding of what it takes to keep this country safe,” said King County Sheriff and candidate Dave Reichert, who added that he strongly believes in Israel as a close ally in the Middle East and the war on terror.
“The war on terror is a war that Israel has been fighting for many, many years,” he said. “The United States understands much, much better what that war feels like after having been attacked on Sept. 11.”
From what he called his “far-removed point of view over here in Seattle,” he sees a continuation in the peace process as an entry point to winning the hearts and minds of the greater Arab world. The peace process “has to continue, it has to be sincere, and there have to be concessions along the way and compromise,” he said.
Conrad Lee is a Chinese-American who escaped from China to Hong Kong before arriving in the U.S. in 1958. He said that having lived under Communist and totalitarian regimes, having Israel as a democratic ally in the Middle East is of utmost importance. “It’s in our best interest to support Israel,” Lee said, “because you’re talking about democracy versus non-democracy.”
He said that no Jewish groups had yet approached him on taking a position on Israel, but said that he would work toward peace and democracy in the region.
“The reason we are elected to Congress is to be actively seeking to create peace in the world and to do things that are right,” he said.
While the four candidates are currently competing to win the nomination in the upcoming primary election, the winner of that contest will then have to fight the Democratic nominee to hold onto the seat being vacated by retiring Representative Jennifer Dunn.
In her current term, Dunn secured funding for Jewish Family Service’s Multi-Ethnic Service Center near Crossroads Mall in Bellevue. The center provides financial assistance and job placement assistance for immigrants from many different countries.
Lee, who sits on the Bellevue City Council, said he strongly supports contracts with social service and faith-based agencies. “As an immigrant,” he said, “I know the hardship and what the barriers are like.”
However, Lee added that the government should not be responsible for administering programs.
“I believe in responsible, accountable, effective programs, and not government doing it, but agencies that know how to do it right,” he said.
Reichert agrees. Though he was unfamiliar with the JFS program, he said that faith-based initiatives should be supported.
“People get energized when they see action by the faith-based communities,” Reichert said. “I think the faith-based initiative is a shot in the arm, a boost to kind of motivate people and get things moving.”
Though many have welcomed the Bush administration’s support of providing funds to religious groups to provide social services, the move has also been roundly criticized because it blurs the line between church and state. Organizations like JFS are not considered faith-based agencies because they do not proselytize while providing services.
Esser, who grew up very close to the Crossroads area and still lives nearby, says he has seen the diversification of the community. He believes that the role of government, at any level, is to help take care of those unable to do so for themselves.
“The best way to go about that for government to help out is through partnerships with nonprofit organizations,” he said. “I think we’re far better off taking advantage of existing networks and the fact that these groups can bring volunteer work to bear and help keep costs down.”
Tebelius said she would not make any campaign promises to any specific constituent group, but helping others is important to her. That is also where government is can best serve, she believes.
“We have to give a hand where we need to give a hand,” she said. “I have a mantra and that is this: we have to remember that we have to take care of those who are the least able and most unfortunate among us.”