For years, congregants, colleagues and friends would lambaste me for my affiliation with the Democratic party. As if wearing that pin of a donkey on my coat lapel was a badge of embarrassment and anti-Zionism.

Calling me anti-Zionist is tantamount to calling all 235 pounds of me, anorexic. Upon meeting me once, seeing my girth, and immediately learning of my love of food, it would be impossible for one to mistake me for someone who loathes it.

I am in Israel anywhere between 4-8 times in a calendar year. Our family spends our summers in Israel, and our kids have each lived there, as have my wife and I for meaningful stints in our education. Our kids have visited Israel more than two dozen times each, which is a number significantly higher than their respective ages. Our largest donations each year are to Israel based organizations and we regularly campaign, support and vote for pro-Israel and pro-American candidates.

But a large and growing group of people would regularly bemoan the fact that the Democratic party hosts the like of Alexandria Ocasio Cortez, Ilhan Omar or Rashida Tlaib, whose bona-fides as Democrats are strong and their demonization of Israel, and by extension Jews, is fierce.

For years these fringe members of the Democratic party, notoriously referred to as the Squad, seemed to invalidate the Democratic party’s ability to ever be pro-Israel. As a result, those who support ideals in the Democratic party were ostracized for the role these fringe few anti-Israel members held.

Then along came Tucker Carlson, an emblem of a radical group within the Republican party whose rhetoric and antics have only reminded us of the bile and hatred that exists from the margins in the GOP, just the same. Tucker is not a lone wolf. He is chummy with Candace Owens, Nick Fuentes and others who traffic in Israel bashing and unapologetic Jew hatred.

For those who would retort “Yeah – but Tucker and Owens are not elected officials”, do you need to look further than Marjorie Taylor Green’s space lasers or Steve Bannon’s role in the White House or Thomas Massie’s voting record to be legitimately concerned?

America has a problem with extremes. From Donald to Zohran, each represent swings in the pendulum to the most intense and severe views held by parties.

It is far past funny or extreme. It is dangerous.

Americans are craving two things, simultaneously:

First, we want a strong, unwavering, reasonable center that is more focused on issues and opportunities than political membership. We have suffered through decades of infighting, name calling and mudslinging that yields little result. These senseless spats are only pulling the pendulum further and ensuring it will swing back harder. It has yielded little for our country and brought out our worst behaviors. Enough!

Do we not deserve to live in a country where politicians break political ranks because it is good for their constituency or the country? Where we do what is right regardless of what a Tweet might read or how one might seek revenge? Is this not the caliber of leaders we want in Washington and beyond?

Second, the ardent and indefatigable centrists want to silence the extremes on both sides. Ideally it would happen organically by making the center so powerful, reasonable and momentous that the peripheral voices would be squelched. And when that will not work, we would call out from both flanks, devoid of political retribution or fears of cancel-culture or primaries, all fouls and conducts unbecoming. In short, we would be less tolerant of hooliganism and actions that are searching for clicks and attention. We would be more focused on what can be done in efforts of unity and effectiveness while staying true to ethics and morality. Debate would be welcome and disagreement would be wanted. Kindness and tolerance would be mandated. It is as easily done as said.

Because guess what? Whether it is coming from Candace Owens or Ayman Mohyeldin, Thomas Massie or Rashida Tlaib, the right and left are equally dangerous in their rhetoric and actions.

It is a damn shame that another loud Jew-hater like Tucker Carlson had to prove that existential dangers live on both sides of the political aisle.

© The Times of Israel (Blogs)