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Israel and the Iraq and a civilization. From the U.S. to West central neoconservative institution like the Berlin, the West was imperiled by Soviet and American Enterprise Institute, could draw Chinese Communism; in the Middle East, Is- upon the movement’s ideas, without it mat- rael was imperiled by the Arab states and by tering that he is not Jewish. Soviet designs on the region. With the Iraq War of 2003, neoconser- By the 1980s, neoconservatives had vatism ceased to be a descriptive term, be- changed; they were no longer based in New coming instead a word with international York and no longer concerned about “making resonance and a great, sometimes dangerous, it,” to borrow the title of Norman Podhoretz’s imprecision of usage. The neoconservatives 1967 autobiography. They had reoriented could be seen as a shadowy presence in the themselves toward Washington, the proper White House, and neoconservatism could be seat of American politics. Despite the promi- a code word for Jews in government, pulling nent Jewish figures who would emerge in the the levers of power and secretly serving Israel movement’s second generation — William by urging President Bush to attack Iraq. Kristol, David Brooks, and Paul Wolfowitz — Though the importance of non-Jews like Dick the Jewish element would diminish over time. Cheney in arguing for war should prevent any Catholic neoconservatives like John Neuhaus easy linkage of Jews, neoconservatism, and the and George Weigel were not less neoconserv- Iraq War, the power of conspiratorial thinking ative than their Jewish counterparts, and Jew- is very strong. This makes it all the more im- ish neoconservatives like David Brooks were portant to clarify the true relationship be- “Jewish” primarily by way of their attachment tween Jews and neoconservatism, which lies in to the intellectual legacy of the movement. the complicated and vanishing milieu of the Someone like Dick Cheney, with his ties to a New York intellectuals. Israel and the Iraq War Allan Arkush ountless magazine articles and books pub- did not exist, would any one of them have fa- Clished during the past few years have doc- vored giving Hans Blix’s team still more time, umented the long campaign on the part of a or leaving the whole matter in the hands of the largely Jewish group of neoconservative intel- UN? Are we to believe that the decades-long lectuals and political figures to get the U.S. to neoconservative campaign against Commu- complete the job it left unfinished in 1991 and nism and anti-Americanism was a fantastically topple Saddam Hussein and his regime. The farsighted Rube Goldberg machine pro- authors of no small number of these works grammed to produce some benefit for Israel have contended that these people were acti- somewhere down the line?” vated mainly by a concern for the security Although Muravchik somewhat oversim- of Israel. None of the neoconservatives, for plified matters, he made a valid point. Even their part, deny that Israel’s safety is of great more than their predecessors, today’s Jewish importance to them. But did it override every- neoconservatives share a perspective that ex- thing else in their eyes? Did their preoccupa- tends far beyond the need to protect Israel, tions with Israel cloud their analyses of which is by no means the centerpiece of their American foreign policy? Did they drag the thinking. This emerges quite clearly from all U.S. into a war that was designed to serve an- of their post-Cold War programmatic writings other nation’s interests more than those of on foreign policy, which have been focused their own country? mainly on outlining the multifarious ways in Writing in Commentary in September 2003, which the U.S ought to dominate world affairs neoconservative Joshua Muravchik responded benevolently during what one of them, Allan Arkush is a profes- to such questions with some questions of his Charles Krauthammer, memorably character- sor of Judaic studies at own. Richard Perle, Elliott Abrams, and Paul ized as a “unipolar moment.” Binghamton University. Wolfowitz, he noted, “as well as the rest of the Conspiracy-mongers have no difficulty in neocon circle, are and were hardliners toward dismissing such writings as mere instruments April 2008 Nisan 5768 the USSR, China, Nicaragua, and North Korea. for the perpetration of a nefarious Zionist To subscribe: 877-568-SHMA Is it any wonder that they held a similar posi- plot. Other observers may conclude that www.shma.com tion toward Saddam Hussein’s Iraq? If Israel where there are so many accusations of the 10 use of smoke there must be at least some fire, conservatives and criticized them extensively, regardless of what the neoconservatives say in focusing on what he perceived to be their their own defense. Perhaps their concern for overambitious goals and unwise strategies. Israel’s security predisposed them, wittingly or And yet, Fukuyama never accused any of his unwittingly, to favor a more activist stance in former allies of misplaced loyalty (though he American foreign policy than they might oth- wrote an article in which he charged Charles erwise support. Krauthammer, in particular, with letting his An awareness of the vicissitudes of mod- views on how Israelis should handle the Pales- ern Jewish history has, to some extent, rein- tinians color his views on how the U.S should forced the Jewish neoconservatives’ sense of deal with the Arabs more broadly). the presence of evil in this world, and the Those who are not persuaded by what the need for what they see as the forces of good, neoconservatives themselves say or by what led by America, to combat it. But this does not Fukuyama fails to say will no doubt continue imply that they pushed for the invasion of Iraq to believe that Wolfowitz et al, whether they in order to protect the Jewish state. Indeed, know it or not, were pursuing a more Zionist whatever their fiercest enemies may say, the agenda than they ever let on. I myself do not neoconservatives’ best informed critics make think that such notions are defensible, but I no such charges. Francis Fukuyama, for ex- do not expect that they will go away. Indeed, ample, in 1998, was a cosigner, along with Paul strongly pro-Israel American Jews in high Wolfowitz, William Kristol, Richard Perle, and places who advocate or help to institute poli- other neoconservatives of a letter to President cies that are promoted, in part, as beneficial Clinton urging him to remove Saddam Hus- to Israel will always be exposed to such suspi- sein from power. On September 20, 2001, he cions, especially when the policies for which cosigned a similar letter to President Bush. they are responsible are unpopular or unsuc- After the war, however, he broke with the neo- cessful — or both. The Domestic Agenda Diana Furchtgott-Roth he neoconservative view of domestic pol- presidential campaign. Republicans, as exem- Ticy can best be summed up by Nobel plified not only by their presumptive candi- prize-winning economist Milton Friedman, at date, Arizona Senator John McCain, are the conclusion of his book, Capitalism and Free- putting forward a portfolio of individual solu- dom. Talking about “the internal threat com- tions designed to increase individual choice ing from men of good intentions and good and reduce the reach of government. De- will who wish to reform us,” he writes: “Impa- mocrats, as exemplified by the platforms of tient with the slowness of persuasion and ex- New York Senator Hillary Clinton and Illinois ample to achieve the great social changes they Senator Barack Obama, who, as of this writ- envision, they are anxious to use the power of ing, are essentially tied, are proposing more the state to achieve their ends and confident government funding and control. of their own ability to do so. Yet if they gained In tax policy, Democrats want to let Presi- the power, they would fail to achieve their im- dent Bush’s tax rates for top earners and small mediate aims and, in addition, would produce businesses expire in 2010, raising taxes from a collective state from which they would recoil 35 percent to 40 percent. Tax breaks for busi- Diana Furchtgott-Roth, in horror and of which they would be among ness investment would also be reduced. With former chief economist of these funds, they would spend more on a the first victims.” the U.S. Department of The roles of the individual versus the state whole range of domestic programs. In con- Labor, is a senior fellow can be seen in many areas of domestic policy, trast, Republicans propose to not only make at the Hudson Institute such as taxes, healthcare, education, and President Bush’s tax rates permanent, but also and director of Hudson’s transportation. Neoconservatives put forward lower the rates further, both for individuals Center for Employment solutions that tax Americans less and give and businesses. Policy. them more choice in their purchase of serv- The Democrats’ approach to services is to April 2008 spend more money to cover specific programs ices, whereas others suggest higher taxes and Nisan 5768 a larger role for the government. for more people. Take education, where the To subscribe: 877-568-SHMA This battle is being played out now in the price tags of Hillary Clinton’s new programs www.shma.com 11.
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