A former
White House Jewish liaison running for Congress solicited the support of top
Jewish communal leaders in a fund-raising letter.
In an
e-mail headlined, “We support Jay. Will you?” twelve prominent Jewish
leaders solicit funds for Jay Footlik, a liaison to the Jewish community during
the Clinton administration who is bidding for the Democratic nomination to run
against Chicago-area Rep. Mark Kirk (R-Ill.). Kirk’s constituency has a
substantial Jewish population, and although he is solidly pro-Israel, he is
considered vulnerable because of his backing for President Bush’s domestic
policies and the war in Iraq.
“He
has been a critical resource to us for two decades, serving as our community’s
voice in politics and championing our priorities at the highest levels of
government,” the email sent this week says of Footlik. “Today, we are
asking you to become a resource for Jay.”
Signatories
include Mort Zuckerman and Shoshana Cardin, both former chairmen of the
Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations; Alan Solomont,
a backer of the Israel Policy Fund now leading fund-raising for Illinois Sen.
Barack Obama’s bid for the Democratic presidential nomination; Steve Grossman,
a past president of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee and now a
lead-fundraiser for Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.), also seeking the
presidency; and Alan Dershowitz, the Harvard law professor and writer.
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