By Lawrence Davidson

Back in early November the organisation Jewish Voice for Peace  (JVP), one of the few remaining American Jewish organisations that has the decency to publicly support the human and civil rights of the Palestinian people, put out an urgent notice. The notice asked supporters of the Palestinian cause to protest against the recent action of a progressive US senator.

The urgency was generated by the announcement that, following the murder of 11 Jews killed at a Pittsburgh synagogue, the Democratic senator from New Jersey Cory Booker, would “support the long-stalled Federal Gag Bill (aka the Israel anti-Boycott Act) as a “response” to rising anti-Semitism”. What makes Booker’s action so questionable is that (1) the Boycott has nothing to do with anti-Semitism and (2) Booker’s mislabeling it as such clashes with his normal support for liberal causes. It represents a fraying of his professed liberal principles.

Booker has a record of consistently supporting socially progressive issues. He has taken a stand in support of the legalisation of same-sex marriage, single-payer health care and women’s rights. But there is a catch. Democratic politicians are often liberal on domestic issues while choosing to be quite illiberal on issues related to foreign policy in the Middle East. This discordance is particularly seen when it comes to the rights of oppressed Palestinians.