May 25

Barack Obama really screwed his campaign yesterday. To say politely, he infuriated most of the Jewish population within the country.

This frustration comes from Obama's comments on Israel's borders. He suggested that Israel return land to the Palestinians in an attempt for peace, giving up land taken by Israel during the Six-Day War in 1967. To say that this was received badly is an understatement.

The war was an example of extreme hostility toward the State of Israel, as well as Judaism as a whole. We demonstrated our determination and might as a people by not only fending off the opposing troops, but also taking new land.

Obama proposing peace negotiations in the Middle East is excellent. For him to offer his exterior perspective on the matter was also potentially helpful, especially in the hopes of offering a moderating voice to the clamor of biased voices. The problem, though, has everything to do with two problems: wording and timing.

First, wording was a challenge. Obama was proposing changes that many would scoff at. The reason: many found it inappropriate that he was trying to influence a part of the world that was not under his control. Why is it that the US needs to get involved in a problem that doesn't effect them, especially when the US is siding with the "opposing" side of the war.

Now, from a timing perspective, Obama really goofed up. We are a year and a half away from an election year. Throwing the Israelis under the bus so close to his bid for reelection is not a good plan, especially when so many Jewish voters are willing to chip in with campaign contributions.