Representatives of leading American Jewish organizations met with 23 Democratic senators.
Among the issues raised in Wednesday’s meeting were Iran’s alleged pursuit of weapons of mass destruction, food stamps, subprime loans, Medicaid, emergency food and shelter, and immigration.
Jewish participants told JTA they were struck by the breadth of Jewish political concerns expressed at the meeting, a fact noted by Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.), who expressed his pride that American Jews support political causes that transcend narrow parochial concerns.
“That’s the nice thing about the Jewish community,” said Marla Gilson, the director of Hadassah’s Washington Action Office. “I always say to people I speak to, we talk about tikkun olam, and senators and their staff are not used to hearing that in the 20 or so meetings they have in their day.”
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