WASHINGTON, Nov. 17 (JTA) — It seems that with nearly every hot-button issue for the Jewish community these days, Sen. Rick Santorum (R-Pa.) is leading the debate. But he isn’t always representing the views of the Jews. Take Nov. 5, 2003. On the same day that Santorum stepped out on the Senate floor to blast the Ford Foundation for its support of Palestinian groups that disseminate anti-Semitic rhetoric, he also stood behind President Bush as he signed a ban of “partial-birth abortions” even in cases where a mother’s health is at stake. On one issue, he was the Jewish community’s advocate. On the other, he took a position most Jews see as adversarial. Santorum, a religious conservative who chairs the Senate Republican Conference, has formed a surprising alliance with a wide range of American Jewish organizations. And he has become increasingly available to them to use his position in the Republican leadership to shepherd key legislation on their agendas through the Senate. But while many Jewish organizational leaders are grateful for his efforts and interest, many are also wary of a lawmaker who diverges from their positions on some of the most important policy issues of the day — including abortion and faith-based initiatives. The complexity of Santorum’s relationship with the Jews is best illustrated by glancing at the senator’s calendar for last week. On Monday, Nov. 10, he was in New York speaking to the Orthodox Union’s Institute for Public Affairs, promising to work for the O.U.’s top legislative priority — a bill that would require employers to allow their workers to wear religious garb and take off for religious holidays. The next day, he was leading the debate in the Senate to impose sanctions on Syria, because the country harbors terrorist organizations and attempts to develop nuclear weapons. The Syria Accountability Act, a foreign policy priority for many Jewish groups, passed the Senate with only four “no” votes, and it is expected to be signed by President Bush before the end of the year. But then he was back on the Senate floor overnight midweek, leading two all-night debate sessions aimed at confirming a group of federal judges whose confirmations are being held up by a Democratic filibuster. The appointments are opposed by some Jewish groups, who see the justices as hostile to affirmative action and civil rights. Jewish organizational leaders in Washington say they know Santorum parts with them on many key issues, but they still are grateful that he is reaching out to them. He has scheduled regular meetings with a broad group of Jewish organizations, across the religious and political spectrum, to touch base and exchange views. “I think every group in the room knows that they disagree with him on other issues,” one Jewish organization official said of these meetings. “But they are there and they are talking to him,” the official said, on the condition of anonymity. And “there’s a lot of love in the room during those meetings.” For his part, the senator says the meetings are about consensus building, a major part of his role as caucus chairman. “When you’re out there, working on an issue, you’re looking for folks that will be with you,” he told JTA the evening of Nov. 12, between trips to the Senate floor for the all-night debate. Santorum has found that support, at varying times, from across the Jewish spectrum. Many Jewish groups, for instance, are rallying around the Charity Aid, Recovery and Empowerment Act, a Santorum initiative to give tax breaks for charitable giving by individuals and corporations. The bill, passed in both the Senate and the House of Representatives, is awaiting a conference committee to work out differences in the bills. And his support for pro-Israel legislation, like the Syria bill, is welcomed. But more often, Santorum has gotten the backing of only a handful of conservative Jewish groups, most notably the Orthodox Union. “I’m in much more agreement with the O.U. than many Christian denominations,” Santorum, who describes himself as an “Orthodox Catholic,” said in the interview. “When it comes to how we live our lives, there is very much common ground.” Santorum reached for and received the O.U.’s support for faith-based initiatives, a controversial Bush administrative plan to give federal funds to religious groups that engage in social-service programming. That endorsement was significant for the bill’s backers, given that many Jewish groups and other liberal organizations were decrying it as a violation of the separation of church and state. The legislation did not pass, but it seems to have sealed a bond between the O.U. and the Republican leadership. It was the partnership on faith-based issues that led Nathan Diament, director of the O.U.’s Institute for Public Affairs, to ask for Santorum’s aid on the Workplace Religious Freedom Act, the O.U.’s top legislative priority. Santorum almost immediately became the bill’s Republican sponsor. The legislation has gone nowhere for years, but Diament is confident it could move next year. Having a non-Jew leading the charge is a benefit, Diament said. “It’s good politically for it not to be a Jew,” he said, echoing the view of most Jewish groups lobbying for legislation. But while it is nice to have a non-Jewish lawmaker take an interest in their issues, insiders say, some Jews are skeptical about getting support from such a staunch religious Christian. Some suggest that Santorum’s motives may be part of a larger effort to garner Jewish support for the Republican Party. Or at the very least to show the GOP in a better light to Jews, in an attempt to quell some of the vast donations that Jews consistently send to Democrats and liberal causes. “He is a politician in all the crass senses,” said one Jewish organizational official, echoing the view of many. But, the official said, Jews must take their support where it can be found. Santorum says that crafting alliances on different issues with different people is part of playing politics. He pointed to Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.), who bitterly opposed Santorum’s position on the abortion debate but co-sponsored the Syria bill with him. “I don’t like the idea that we are courting the vote,” Santorum says of the Republicans’ work with the Jewish community. “We are sharing our beliefs on how to create an America that is prosperous and free.”
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