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Susan Hershberg Adelman did not have many resources to vote against a Democrat in Tuesday's midterm elections. According to her, President Donald Trump has won the continued support of Congress by being the "most pro-Israel president we have ever had".
But last week, when Republican congressional candidate Lena Epstein, who was Jewish, invited a messianic rabbi to lead a prayer during an election campaign featuring Vice President Mike Pence for the people slaughtered at the Tree of Life of Pittsburgh, Adelman would have liked not to have sent it. in his postal ballot. Epstein, Trump's co-chair in Michigan in 2016, is battling Democrat Haley Stevens for a place in the House from retired Republican Dave Trott.
"It was just stupid, stupid, stupid," said Adelman, 77, retired pediatric surgeon and author, who was promoting his book "After Saturday Comes Sunday" at a book fair. organized by the Jewish Community Center of Grand Detroit. "If it had happened and I had not voted yet, I would have seriously thought about it. It was really stupid.
This political flub – which Epstein defended by calling the critics "religiously intolerant" – is a rare example of the old picturesque adage of the old politico-local adage in a cycle in which both parties worked to ensure that mid-term give the impression of a national referendum. Trump administration. Outside of Epstein's incident, most Jewish voters said Tuesday they were suburban voters pretty much anywhere – either disgusted by Trump's nationalist politics and controversial remarks. , be happy to get rid of its edges to adopt its economic and foreign policy.
"Nothing in this man should be acceptable to Jews who know their history, who know what immigrants have scapegoated and defamed over the millennia," said Robert Cohen, 44, while he said. he was leaving the One Stop Kosher Market. hub of orthodox Jewish life in the region. "I used to vote based on each candidate's qualifications, but this year I could not let any Republicans think that what they were doing suited me."
In addition to Epstein, among Jewish congressional candidates are Democrats Andy Levin, who are seeking to replace his father and Elissa Slotkin, a former advisor to President Obama, to overthrow Representative Mike Bishop in another suburban-rural district in the United States. north of Ann Arbor.
"I would never vote for someone just because he was Jewish, but Elissa Slotkin seems to be a smart young woman and her Jewishness certainly does not hurt me," said Jess Burke, 68, after voting for her in Plymouth. "But most of all, I love her because she does not like Trump."
Rachel Zacks, a 28-year-old Uber and Lyft driver, said she was not working on Tuesday, so she could be available to drive seniors free at the polls. Zacks lives in Ann Arbor, where US Democrat Representative Debbie Dingell does not have a major opponent, and she found it frustrating that "I have not much left do on my ballot to really stick to the Trumpers ". Senator Debbie Stabenow, also a Democrat, ran for re-election, but her opponent lagged behind in all polls.
Zacks accuses Trump's inflammatory rhetoric and his refusal to aggressively denounce white nationalism for promoting the environment that drove an armed man to commit the Pittsburgh massacre. The election of a larger number of Democrats – especially a diverse group including people of different races and religions – will show the world that Americans reject this idea. Specifically, she said, as a Jew she was excited about Rashida Tlaib, who is about to become one of the first two Muslim women in Congress.
"What message would that send!" Zacks said. "If the Democrats are doing well in Michigan, we will have a Muslima in Congress, a woman in the governor's residence, a lesbian as Attorney General. How cool would it be? "
Such a vision is "only politically correct ignorance," said Chaim Epstein, 82, citing Tlaib's contradictory positions on Israel. Tlaib lost the backing of the progressive J Street Jewish lobby shortly after her main victory in August after stating that she opposed a two-state solution to the Palestinian issue. She later stated that she supported anything that could bring peace, but the incident had alienated her.
"Many of these Democrats think that supporting the rainbow, of all colors or not, is always a good thing, but they should think about what these people will do when they are in power," he said. said Epstein after voting at Congregation B & # 39; Nai Moshe at Bloomfield Hills. "People like Rashida Tlaib are not going to become friends with Jews or Christians, or anyone else other than his people."
Republicans like Epstein and Adelman also reject the idea that the Pittsburgh massacre was the result of all that was hateful of the Jews.
"Has Trump created anti-Semitism?" She asked. "We have not had anti-Semitism for 2,000 years? It's incredibly stupid. How does Trump empower these people? They are anti-Semitic. Just like Hitler and all those people killed the Jews. "
Yet Gail Hines, 69, a retired executive in the pharmaceuticals industry, refused to let Trump or his supporters get away with the deal.
"Anyone who supports everything about Donald Trump – and especially a Jew – should think twice before voting for Republicans," said Hines. "Whether he is anti-Semitic or not, he encourages or does not discourage people from this view."
Steve Friess is a freelance journalist based in Ann Arbor. His works appear regularly in the New York Times, the Playboy, the New Republic and many others. He tweets to @SteveFriess.
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