|
|
January 16, 2004/Tevet 22 5764, Vol. 56, No.17
Fuerth to advise Dean
MATTHEW E. BERGER
Jewish Telegraphic Agency
WASHINGTON - For a presidential campaign eager to dispel questions about a candidate's commitment to Israel, hiring Leon Fuerth could be just what the doctor ordered.
Last week, Howard Dean's campaign named Fuerth chairman of Dean's foreign policy team.
Fuerth, who served as Al Gore's national security adviser both when Gore was a senator and when he was vice president, was a leading architect of Gore's policy positions on Middle Eastern issues, including his vote for the Persian Gulf War in 1991.
Fuerth's appointment is expected to go a long way toward counterbalancing the negative reception Dean has had among some Jews because of his missteps.
"He has a long record of involvement and there have been any number of encounters that demonstrate his understanding of the region and his support for a robust U.S.-Israel relationship," said David Harris, executive director of the American Jewish Committee.
Fuerth has eight years of experience as a principal in White House planning meetings with Cabinet officials during the Clinton administration.
Fuerth, a Jew with a pro-Israel record, could help dispel some Jews' concerns about Dean.
During the campaign, Dean has suggested that the United States should take a more "even-handed" approach toward the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, called Hamas terrorists "soldiers" and said that former President Jimmy Carter - whom many supporters of Israel consider biased toward the Palestinians - would make a good Middle East envoy.
Dean's campaign has said the "even-handed" comment was a clumsy attempt to call for increased U.S. involvement in the peace process, that by calling Hamas members soldiers he was bolstering Israel's right to make them military targets, and that some of the other Democratic candidates also have touted Carter as a possible envoy.
Last week, Dean sought to quiet another potential storm by repudiating newly resurfaced 1998 remarks about Hamas.
NBC News aired segments from a 1998 Canadian television appearance in which Dean said that if Hamas took power, it might "actually have to be more responsible and start negotiations" with Israel.
On Jan. 9, Dean said that in the years since he gave the interview, "it has become crystal clear that Hamas is an unrepentant terrorist organization and the Palestinian Authority must live up to its obligations to the United States and Israel and dismantle Hamas and other terrorist groups."
|
