The Forward’s J.J. Goldberg looks at how the only two Jewish Republicans in Congress, Arlen Specter and Eric Cantor, are making some noise:
In a real sense, then, Obama’s success in Congress is bound up with the fortunes of those two Republicans, Cantor and Specter. By coincidence, both happen to be Jewish. In fact, they are the only Jewish Republicans on Capitol Hill — indeed, the only Jews holding any elected federal office as Republicans. …
Specter, 79, is a lifelong maverick and loner. He’s one of the last of the party’s so-called Eastern liberals, well outside today’s conservative mainstream and proud of it. Cantor, 46, is an affable, fast-rising party leader and an important voice for conservative ideology. Specter may be the Republican lawmaker with the least regard for party discipline. Cantor is one of the party’s most important disciplinarians.
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