Jerry Nadler and the moral collapse of American Jewish liberals

There was a time when Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.) could be counted on as a stalwart defender of the Jewish state. I know this because I heard him speak at a street-corner, pro-Israel demonstration across from the United Nations in the late 1980s. Those were during the dark days of the First Intifada, when it was becoming clear that fashionable liberal political opinion started turning on Israel as it coped with violent Palestinian demonstrations within and around its borders. Even though The New York Times editorial page and other outlets popular in his Manhattan constituency were denouncing Jerusalem’s efforts to cope with the situation, Nadler turned up to express his solidarity.

That was a long time ago. But as the 78-year-old announced this week that he won’t run for a 17th term in Congress, it is difficult to square the sentiments I heard from him that day with the political figure he eventually became.

That was made obvious in July when, rather than showing up to support the Jewish state, he joined a protest against Israel’s just war of self-defense, outside the Israeli consulate in New York City, organized by the viciously anti-Israel group T’ruah.

Nadler is best known to most Americans because of his four years as chairman of the House Judiciary Committee from 2019 to 2023 and for stage-managing two separate impeachments of President Donald Trump. His truculent attitude during his time in the spotlight seemed to embody the hyper-partisan spirit of the moment for both liberals and conservatives. A knee-jerk opposition to Trump and the Republicans on every conceivable issue played well among Democrats, especially at home on Manhattan’s Upper West Side. He’s even garnering applause from liberal pundits for his retirement announcement because of his recognition that his party’s tradition, in which geriatrics hold onto power at the expense of younger people, and, as with the example of President Joe Biden, past the point where they are competent, is something that needs to end.