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Is Michael Howard
Being Jewish Bad? The Leader of the Conservative Party is Jewish and Some Say That It's Hurting the Party. Ryan Murphy
(The Turtleship) -- January 2005 saw the introduction of British Labour Party election posters portraying Michael Howard and his Shadow Chancellor Oliver Letwin -- both of whom are Jewish -- as pigs. Jewish groups have condemned the election poster targeting the British Conservative Party leadership as anti-Semitic. Would such claims have been made if Michael Howard were not Jewish? Is the fact that he is Jewish going to be an issue and hurt the Conservative Party in the upcoming British national election in June 2005? Michael Howard is a highly accomplished individual. Born in 1941, Mr. Howard excelled in Llanelli Grammar School and entered Cambridge University. He spent his undergraduate years at Peterhouse, Cambridge. While at Cambridge, Mr. Howard made his presence at the university felt by being elected to the presidency of the Cambridge Union in 1962. Mr. Howard passed his Bar exams in 1964 and was appointed the Queen's Council (QC) in 1982. Michael Howard's entrance to political leadership came in 1983 when he was elected Member of Parliament for Folkestone and Hythe. Since then, Mr. Howard has steadily risen in power within the Conservative Party ranks until now he stands as the leader of the Conservative Party in the United Kingdom. If the Conservative Party wins the next General Elections in June 2005, Mr. Howard will become the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. The United Kingdom's form of government is Constitutional Monarchy. There is a Queen, but she functions mostly as a figurehead. The political power actually belongs to the Prime Minister. Although seen as equivalent to the office of the President in the United States, the British Prime Minister yields considerably more power in his context. The United Kingdom lacks the checks and balances of the American government, where the executive, the legislative, and the judiciary provide checks and balances of power. One of the reasons that the framers of the US government created the checks and balances is because Great Britain lacked it and Americans suffered as a result. Great Britain today is not unlike the Great Britain of hundreds of years past. The difference is that the Prime Minister now commands king-like powers in many respects in the place of a monarch. The fact that Michael Howard has been able to rise to the apex of power in his political party may come as a surprise for many Americans. Michael Howard is Jewish, and Jewish chances for advancement at the highest levels are quite low in the United States. The United States never had a Jewish President or a Jewish Vice President in its whole history. Mr. Howard's rise to power in the British context is not so surprising. After all, there was a Jewish Prime Minister in the United Kingdom in 1874 in the person of Benjamin Disraeli. Benjamin Disraeli joined the Conservatives in 1837. Given the history, it is not surprising that there are many influential Jews in the Conservative Party. Michael Howard is one such influential Jewish individual. Mr. Howard has managed to remain relatively under the radar until the January 2005 incident involving Prince Harry. Prince Harry went to a private costume party wearing a Nazi uniform. While such a uniform for a costume or Halloween party may not seem so out of place, many Jewish groups pointed to the fact that Prince Harry is a highly public figure and made a very big deal out of the incident. Mr. Howard was one of the very public figures calling Prince Harry to make a public apology. It is understandable why Mr. Howard was so angry and publicly exhibited his displeasure. He is a son of a Holocaust survivor. But the emotional outburst in public showed the British people that he was Jewish and that it played a very important role in his vision of the world. The fact that he is a Conservative Party leader did not go unnoticed. Several public surveys conducted after the incident showed that the Conservative Party expected to suffer the worst defeat in 100 years at the next General Elections in June 2005. Many started questioning if the fact that Mr. Howard is Jewish has something to do with the defection of many Conservatives and the general unpopularity of the Conservative Party in the United Kingdom. The question is heightened by the fact that Mr. Howard is a highly competent individual. There is no reason why the Conservative Party should suffer their worst defeat in 100 years under his leadership were it not for factors other than his competency. The appearance of the "pig posters" supporting British Labour Party election campaign seemed to confirm that Mr. Howard's Jewishness is an issue. Although it is the Jewish groups which first brought to attention the "anti-Semitic" nature of the election posters targeting Mr. Howard, it certainly begs the question: Will the British Labour Party win the General Election in June 2005 if Jewish groups keep emphasizing that Mr. Howard is Jewish? They claim that another British Labour poster is portraying Mr. Howard as a Shylock figure, the hated Jew found in Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice. But a question remains. Are Jewish groups reading too much into the posters? People have often portrayed politicians as pigs and Mr. Howard is a politician. Maybe the posters are not anti-Semitic at all. It is possible that Jewish groups are reading too much into the posters. Political caricature in cartoon form is a long-standing tradition in British politics -- regardless of the politician's background. One thing is clear, if British public will vote against Mr. Howard and the Conservative Party because he is Jewish, then the Jewish groups are not helping Mr. Howard's political future by crying, "anti-Semitism." Next British General Election will show if the Conservative Party will suffer the greatest defeat in 100 years. But a lot can happen in six months. It is possible that Michael Howard can win and become the Prime Minister. One thing is clear, however. There may be many influential Jews in politics, but the United Kingdom is not the Jewish state. The majority of the people who will be voting are not Jewish. Playing the anti-Semitism card will hurt Jewish candidates than help them. It is difficult to be a target if one is below the radar.
Copyright 2005 The Turtleship. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. ISSUES FACING AMERICA
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